


Together We Survive

by xCommanderPrincessx



Category: Fear the Walking Dead (TV)
Genre: Apocalypse, Clexa, F/F, FTWD, elyza and alicia, otp
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-02-04
Updated: 2018-01-22
Packaged: 2018-09-22 00:51:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 47,367
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9574646
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xCommanderPrincessx/pseuds/xCommanderPrincessx
Summary: The Journey of Alicia and Elyza as they adjust to their new lives in the apocalypse.





	1. Chapter 1

I looked out over the clear waves as our small boat sped across the open water. Strand, my mom and Ofelia had stayed on the Abigail whilst the rest of us went back to shore on a supply run. We were running low on supplies so we had little choice but to return to the mainland. My mom had stayed to keep an eye on Strand, reluctantly allowing me to go out with the others.

Nick sat at my side with a crowbar in hand, Daniel had his usual rifle slung across his back, and even Chris had his own gun. I was the only one left without a weapon and that really pissed me off.

'I don't see why I can't have a weapon,' I complained, not missing the triumphant smirk that Nick sent my way. He was clearly amused by how our mother still treated me.

'Don't look at me, it was down to your mother' Travis said, his gaze remaining fixed on the land that was growing steadily closer. Madison had insisted that there wouldn't be any need for me to carry a weapon because at the first sign of trouble we were all to get back in the boat and return without delay. I didn't bother to tell her that wasn't how it worked, if things went badly then I didn't want to be left defenseless.

'Mom made me promise to look out for you,' Nick replied, running his hand down the length of the crowbar as he puffed his chest out with a tilted smile.

I scoffed at that, leaning over to give my brother a playful shove but otherwise remaining silent. One day my mom had to realize that in this new world I couldn't be an innocent child who needed protecting. Things were different now, the apocalypse tended to change people.

I had no more time to dwell on my thoughts when Daniel cut off the engine and we all hopped out of the boat to tug it onto the shore. Travis wiped his hands dry once it was high enough and turned to face us all.

'We want this to be quick, we return here in one hour with as many supplies as you can find.'

We all nodded in agreement, Travis and Chris taking the left side of town, Nick and I the right. Daniel was left to his own devices, he could take care of himself and needed no protection other than his rifle.

Nick and I entered the first house we came across not a few minutes walk from the shore, my brother taking the upstairs whilst I searched downstairs. A rucksack lay abandoned in the hallway and I dusted it off quickly before heading straight to the kitchen to gather as many cans as I could find.

Once the kitchen was cleared I was is eager to move on to the next house and shouted up to see how my brother was faring. 'Nick? You ready?'

For a few moments all that could be heard was the thud of items falling to the floor above my head before he called out in response.

'Almost done!'

What the hell was taking him so long? For something to do to pass time I began to search through the many drawers that were located around the kitchen and dining room, stopping short when I opened one to reveal a handgun.

I glanced up quickly to see that my brother was still not ready, items being dropped carelessly every now and again heard thumping through the ceiling above me.

I returned my gaze to the handgun, slowly picking it up to inspect the weapon. After a few moments a large smile formed on my face, my mom didn't need to know and there was no way I was roaming around the walker infected streets without some way of protecting myself.

The gun felt strange in my grip, never having held one before, and I swiftly tucked it into the waist band of my jeans, ignoring the feeling of unease that had built within me at how unnatural the weapon had felt to hold.

I considered shouting up to Nick again but decided that he could catch up. Leaving the house quietly, I moved further down the street, passing the abandoned houses that all seemed to have been ransacked early on. I faintly heard Nick cursing wildly when he discovered that I had gone ahead without him but I didn't bother to look back, knowing that he would follow.

Taking the turning on my left I located a number of shops grouped around a parking area, heading directly for the one that was signed Stumps Family Market Place. I looked over my shoulder to see Nick going between vehicles to check if any worked, and leaving him to it I headed into the store. Glancing around cautiously I saw no signs of walkers and, keeping an eye out for any danger, I moved down the first aisle to find a few tins that had not been looted, shoving them quickly into my bag before moving onto the next aisle.

I almost dropped the can I was holding when I heard my name being called, glancing out of the shop window to see Nick casually strolling through the parking lot as if he weren't in the middle of the zombie apocalypse.

'Alicia,' he called, extended each syllable as he did and I shook my head in annoyance before I saw the ridiculous floppy hat that he wore on his head, unable to stop the smile that grew on my lips. 

'You're such an idiot,' I called back, not that he could hear me, laughing softly at the ridiculous image of my brother. The hat was probably the only thing that he had salvaged from the cars I thought with a roll of my eyes. Typical.

Our moment of normality was shattered in a second when a number of low moans filled the air and my amusement quickly turned to horror when I saw a group of walkers dragging themselves out of the building on my left, casting their heads about as they identified their next meal.

'Shit,' I muttered, running back into the food store where I'd left my rucksack as my brother called out desperately from the car park. Picking up the bag, I froze when another groan sounded and this one was not from outside the store. Slowly raising my eyes from the ground I glimpsed a flash of rotting flesh reaching for me before I got the hell out of there.

Bursting out into the not so empty car park, I saw Nick shouting and waving his arms as he shouted at me to follow him, setting off in a sprint away from the oncoming walkers. I followed suit and ran after him, not fast enough though. I stopped short once I got back onto the road, seeing Nick racing ahead of me down the opposite street, followed closely by a large group of walkers. Some of them turned and began to drag themselves back in my direction and a quick glance over my shoulder alerted me to more approaching from the store.

'Shit,' I muttered again, there was no way I could get through the walkers to join my brother and his pace slowed when he realized the same thing. Looking back at me our eyes met, both of us knowing that we were in an impossible situation.

'Run Alicia! Circle back and meet us at the beach,' he shouted, waiting for me to nod in acknowledgement before setting of once more, soon disappearing from view as he took the turning back to the direction of the shore. The moans of the walkers jolted me into action and with the closest ones barely meters away I turned right and ran for my life.

Empty houses whizzed by as I tried to get by bearings, taking the next left which would hopefully take me back to shore. I soon realized my mistake when this merely led me back past the other side of the store where I had previously been, more walkers spilling into the area. Retracing my steps with panicked breaths I darted down a different street, this one thankfully clear of any walkers. Glancing over my shoulder I saw that some of the faster walkers were quickly gaining on me and I had no choice but to set off running again, ignoring the burn in my chest as I struggled to draw in enough oxygen.

Finally after what felt like an age of endless running, I could no longer hear the moans of the dead at my back and my frantic pace slowed before I pressed my back against the wall of the nearest building, giving myself time to recover from the exertion. I could hardly believe this was happening, I needed to get back to the shore as soon as possible before the others left without me.

The low moaning of walkers in the distance left me with a decision, turning slowly to face them I saw that it was only a few and I was sick of running. With only a little difficulty I managed to draw the gun from my jeans and spun to see more of the undead advancing from the other end of the street. It looked like running was out of the question anyway.

Never having used a gun before, it felt awkward in my grip as I leveled it at the nearest walker. I was soon wishing that I had chosen a more suitable weapon that I could just hit the damn thing with. Steeling my nerves, I pulled the trigger sharply only for a muted click to sound at the action. I repeated the movement again and got the same result.

A wave of pure fear overwhelmed me as the walker advanced even closer. A sudden memory resurfaced, Daniel had said something to Chris a few days ago about the safety clip on his gun and thankfully it was one of the few things I had paid any attention to. I desperately searched and managed to flick it off before firing a poorly aimed shot at the oncoming walker. By some miracle it ripped through its right shoulder though it barely held it up for more than a second. I fired a second shot which missed completely this time, the third also not finding a target.

I cursed my inability as my hands began to shake under the pressure, firing the weapon desperately in the hope of driving the creature back. By the time my ammo was gone the walker was riddled with bullet holes all over its torso but still it came ever closer, hunger in its eyes as it advanced with outstretched arms.

Abandoning the weapon entirely, I threw the useless piece of metal on the ground and spun to flee up the street only to see more of the walkers spilling from the surrounding buildings, their low insistent moans merging together to form a nightmarish sound. The shots fired had attracted some unwanted attention. My chances of surviving this didn't look good.

I squeezed my eyes shut as the mass of undead shuffled down the street and I could do nothing but allow my fear to surround me as I readied myself for the end. I was all out of options and there was no way I could get past that many walkers without being overrun. To my confusion a car horn sounded in the distance and I cracked my eyes open to see the walkers pause their advance, a large number of them slowly turning to follow the sound. I watched in terror as those that didn't turn at the unexpected noise continued on without hesitation to where I stood with my back against the wall, unable to do anything to stop them.

It turned out I didn't have to when a figure leapt in front of me without warning, cutting down the closest walker with a pair of already blood spattered blades, one in each hand. She twirled with impressive skill as she cut down the few remaining walkers, her blonde hair whipping around her face as they fell at her feet. My back slid down the wall as I watched the last of the walkers being disposed of, unable to understand where this person had appeared from.

As the blonde felled the last of the walkers that had been surrounding me, I took the opportunity to rise to my feet and set off at a sprint down the now empty street, not wanting to hang around and meet whoever held such skill with wielding blades, dodging in between different roads to throw off whoever may be around before ducking into the closest house, leaning against the closed door at my back as I regained my breath.

No sound was to be heard outside on the street or in the house and, after a rather nerve wracking search of the building, it seemed that the house was empty. I slumped down into one of the chairs in the main sitting room, relieved that there were no walkers in the house to contend with. If there had been I wondered if I would even have the energy left to fight them off.

Closing my eyes briefly I had no intention of falling asleep though I soon felt myself fall into a light slumber and quickly jerked awake, not willing to leave myself so vulnerable in this unknown place. To keep myself occupied as night fell I thought of what I would do the next day, needing to get back to my family as soon as possible. I hoped that Nick had returned to the boat safely with the others, surely they would be waiting there for my arrival. I didn't dare think of what it would mean if they weren't.

The night seemed to stretch on as I jumped at every sound, certain that walkers would burst in at any second though none did. Eventually the first rays of light began to spill through the cracks in the boarded up windows, signalling the beginning of a new day. Not that I was feeling refreshed at all, far from it.

Pulling myself somewhat unsteadily to my feet I was intent on finding my family. Moving towards the door I stopped for a moment when I realized that I had no idea where I was or which direction the boat was in. My hand hovered over the door handle before I pushed it open and stepped cautiously out into the seemingly empty street.

My eyes constantly searched my surroundings for any sign of walkers as I stayed close to the side of buildings, moving through the shadows so as to be less noticeable. Following the road to a junction I turned to right in the hope that it would lead me back to the shore, my panicked rush to get to safety the previous day had left me completely unsure as to my bearings.

The sun slowly began to creep higher in the sky as the hours passed by and I was still no closer to finding any recognizable signs to lead me back to the boat. My fear grew steadily with each unknown sign that I passed, my hopes of ever getting back to my family again rapidly decreasing. I stopped outside a large building to have a brief rest, despair filling me as I realized that I was completely lost.

I jumped in surprise when a dark figure approached from around the far side of the building, what I thought at first was a walker turned out to be another survivor and I felt a new sense of hope.

'Hello?' I called out tentatively as the figure approached, waiting for them to reply but they said nothing. 'Can you help me back to shore?'

I took a step closer to the advancing figure and held up a hand to shield the sun from my eyes, my feeling of dread intensifying when the man clearly came into sight, his bare arms showing a collection of tattoos and scars that ran all the way over his shoulder to disappear beneath the ragged material of his shirt. This did not look like the kind of person I wanted to be associating with.

'I'm afraid not but seeing as you're such a pretty girl, I know what you can do for me,' he replied in a deep voice, nausea rising in my throat when his eyes roamed by body to focus back on my face. Shit.

Spinning quickly in an attempt to escape the man's advances I did not get far when a large pair of hands grasped at my arms and pulled me back with a shriek. His strength was tremendous and there was no way for me to break free of his grip, pulling my head back in disgust as his foul breath washed over me.

'Mmhhm, you'll be perfect. I'll get a ton of supplies with you to trade,' he mumbled, grunting in a mixture of surprise and pain when my head collided sharply with his face, blood trickling down his nose though his grasp did not falter for a second.

'Bitch,' he growled, backhanding me across the face and sending me crashing to the ground. My face ached from the blow but before I could even rise to my feet, the man crouched at my side and rolled me forcefully on my back, enclosing a pair of metal handcuffs around my wrists. I stumbled when he tugged on the chain sharply and threaded it through a nearby metal gate. Now certain that I wouldn't be able to escape, the man took a step back and wiped at his bloody nose with the bottom of his shirt.

With all of my options virtually gone at this point I did the only thing that I could think of, I opened my mouth and screamed as loud as I could, hearing it echo down through the deserted streets. The man winced at the sound and advanced with a growl of warning which effectively turned into whine when my foot rose sharply right between his legs. Hard. My mom had made sure I was prepared for any incidents before I went to college, looks like those lessons did come in handy after all.

'That's it, I've had enough of you,' he spat after a moment of recovery, giving me no warning when his fist collided with my stomach, knocking the air from my lungs and bringing my cries to a stop. A second forceful blow had me almost unable to remain standing as pain coursed through my body.

'Now stay quiet,' he grunted, moving back to his bag to bring out a strip of cloth which he roughly gagged me with. After one last murderous look he backed away and lent against the shop wall, resting his hands on his knees before wiping away the blood that continued to flow from his nose.

It seemed that my screams had the desired effect and as I struggled against the cuffs I heard the sound of moaning getting closer as walkers closed in on our position. My captor heard them too and with a string of curse words he pulled out a deadly looking axe from a bag at his side, turning to face the walkers. 

I hadn't anticipated just how many walkers would be drawn from my screams but I hoped that it would be enough to distract my captor. The first one neared him and the great axe swung in an arc through the air before embedding itself deep into the walkers head. The man pulled the blade free with a grunt and threw himself towards the next walker in his path.

I struggled wildly against my restraints, trying desperately to free myself and escape whilst he was distracted. My efforts seemed to be in vain when no solution made itself apparant, the cuffs remaining firmly in place no matter what I did. This was it, I was either going to be sold for supplies or eaten by the horde of walkers. Neither option seemed very appealing. A muffled shriek escaped my lips when a figure appeared out of nowhere, gunshots blasting from mere metres away as three of the walkers dropped in a matter of seconds. I stared in shock as the blonde drew two deadly blades that had been strapped across her back and took down the few walkers closest to me.

I watched in amazement as she twirled with impressive skill, cutting down any remaining walkers with virtually no hesitation. I wasn't the only one taken aback at the sudden appearance, my captor regarding the stranger in confusion, his mouth hanging open at the display.

'What the-' he never got time to finish his sentence when a walker enclosed its teeth around his leg and words turned into furious howling as he tried to free himself from its grip. The blonde turned to look at the commotion, reaching down to grasp another two daggers from a hidden strap on her leg, proceeding to throw them with pinpoint accuracy at first the walker and then the infected man. They both fell lifelessly to the ground at her feet and I stumbled back, tripping over the pavement behind me which sent me sprawling to the ground. The imposing figure turned to face me as I shuffled back as far as the chains would allow, very wary of the dangerous girl.

As she approached I thought for a second that she was going to use those deadly blades on me but rather moved to my side and untied the chain from the railing, threading it down through my handcuffs. I could hardly believe that this was the same girl who had saved me earlier from the walkers, and she looked extremely pissed.

'Are you trying to get yourself killed?' she hissed in annoyance, the Australian accent startling me just as much as the evident anger in her tone did. What had I ever done to her?

I didn't bother trying to reply with the gag still in place, everything about this girl screamed danger and I rose unsteadily to my feet with a muffled groan. The girl sighed and reached up to remove the piece of cloth from my mouth, enabling me to breathe easier. Anger still radiated from the blonde as she regarded me closely, her striking blue eyes seeming to absorb every detail.

I backed away from her piercing gaze but stopped short when a pain in my chest had me doubled over, each breath sending a fresh stab of pain through my body. This didn't deter me from continuing to try to get further away from the girl, I had to go and find my family. I had been delayed too long already. The blonde girl moved swiftly past me, planting herself directly in my path. 

'You really are trying to get yourself killed aren't you? You're not going to get far like that,' she told me sharply, ignoring my futile attempts to move around her.

'Go away,' I hissed, my voice barely audible as I tried to ease the pain in my chest by shifting my weight without any result.

'What? No thank you for saving your sorry ass? Twice,' she snapped, crossing her arms over her chest as she looked down at me.

'I need..to go to..' I mumbled, finding it harder to form words as the pain in my chest intensified. I took a small step forwards only for my head to spin wildly, sending me toppling straight into the blonde who grunted in surprise but was quick to raise her arms and steady me.

'I hope you thank me for this later, never damn grateful' she muttered to herself, guiding one of my arms around her shoulder as she supported my weight and half dragged me through the street to where a rusting car waited by the junction. I was in no way able to protest as I was pushed into the passenger seat, the blonde slamming the door shut before getting into the driver's side, a scowl set firmly in place. The revving of the engine and the lurching movement of the car as it burst into motion was the last thing I was aware of before my vision went dark. 

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	2. Take Me Back

I slowly opened my eyes at the sound of the engine cutting off, and I heard the door next to me open a moment later before I was hauled out of the passenger seat.

'Ow,' I mumbled, grasping my chest with my free hand as the stranger ignored my complaints and continued to drag me up the few steps that led to the front door of a house, pushing it open to pull me inside before kicking it shut with ease behind us. We moved through to the sitting room where I was deposited onto the couch, the girl retreating through to a different room where she dropped the car keys on a table with a clatter.

I cast my gaze around the dark interior of the house, taking note of the dusty photos spread throughout the room as the blonde girl opened some windows to allow fresh air to circulate through the stuffy building. Shifting into a more comfortable position sent another wave of pain through my chest and I squeezed my eyes shut as I waited for it to pass, opening them once more when the blonde girl lowered herself onto the couch beside me, a small bag in hand.

'Lift up your shirt,' she told me bluntly, raising an eyebrow when I regarded her cautiously and made no move to do as she said.

'I'm not going to steal your damn organs, lift up your shirt already,' she instructed a second time and slowly I did what she asked, holding it out of the way as she lent forwards to probe my chest gently, only removing her touch when I jerked back in pain.

'Ow!' I exclaimed, wondering if she even had any idea what she was doing.

'You've got a cracked rib, here,' she said briefly, removing a tub of painkillers from the small bag and chucking it into my lap. 'Don't go over the dosage.'

With that she stood abruptly and without another word left the room to disappear upstairs. I watched her go with a frown, I knew nothing about this girl but here I was doing everything she told me without question, what the hell was wrong with me?

Another wave of pain prompted me to open the plastic tub and swallow two of the pills with some of the water that the blonde had placed on the table beside me. After a quick look at the dosage I took a third as an afterthought, fed up of the aching in my chest. I soon regretted that decision when I was overcome with tiredness, the mixture of painkillers and lack of sleep taking effect. The last thing I wanted was to leave myself vulnerable in this strange, unknown place but there was nothing I could do as my heavy eyes shut and I fell into a deep sleep.

\----------------------------------------------

Upon waking I had no idea where I was, my sleep had been deep with none of the usual nightmares that plagued my mind, my slow return to reality met with confusion as I stared up at the painted ceiling above me.

'Well look who's finally awake, took you long enough,' a voice sounded close by with a familiar Australian accent. I tipped my head the slightest bit to see my rescuer sat with the back of a chair facing me, her legs wrapped around either side as she rested her head on her wrists.

Slightly disconcerted to find her staring at me, I pulled myself slowly up into a sitting position, having stretched out over the couch at some point during my sleep. My chest held a dull ache that matched my throbbing cheek where the man had backhanded me yesterday. I brought a hand up to feel the tender area, running a hand through the mess that was my hair and groaned at my predicament.

'You've been out all of yesterday and last night, talk about rough,' the blonde girl commented from her position on her chair, an eyebrow arched when I threw her a dark glare. This was not how I had planned things to happen, I should've been back with my family by now, not here with this stranger. I jumped slightly when a cereal bar flew through the air to land beside me, startled by the unexpected movement.

'Thought you might be hungry,' the blonde stated, rising from the chair and moving into the kitchen to rummage for some food for herself. I stared down at the food blankly, grabbing it a moment later before standing and turning to face the girl as she emerged from the kitchen, an identical bar in hand.

'I need to get to the coast, I can't stay here,' I told her firmly, watching as she walked back around the couch to her previous position on the wooden chair.

'Well good luck fighting those walkers with a cracked rib and no weapons,' she retorted ripping into her cereal bar as she settled back onto the chair, taking a large bite as she waited for my response. Aware that she was right I slowly lowered myself back onto the couch, watching the girl warily as I wondered what she was hoping to achieve from all of this.

'You live here?' I asked after a moment, opening my own cereal bar to take a tentative bite, soon realizing just how hungry I was.

'For now,' she replied, both of us watching the other carefully as we kept all personal information to the minimum, she was still a stranger despite having saved me. In the apocalypse people were never all that they seemed. They could be nice to your face and then plan to rob you blind when your back was turned. It was self profit and made each and everyone person left paranoid about others intentions. 

'What makes you so desperate to return to the coast?' she asked in response, tipping the chair beneath her at a ridiculous angle and I wondered how she managed to balance it in such a way.

'My family are meeting me there,' I offered, not willing to go into any more detail until I knew more about who I was revealing the information to. 'What about you, any family?'

'I don't need anyone else,' she told me bluntly, rising from the chair to throw her wrapper onto the table. I didn't push for anything more, we were both testing the other at this point and I was hardly forthcoming.

'And how are you planning on getting all the way back to the coast?' she inquired, making me uneasy as she moved out of my line of sight. I did not know how far I could trust this girl yet.

'You drove me here so you can drive me back,' I snapped, irritated at how hopeless she made the idea sound, I would get back to the coast even if I had to walk. Though a car would be far more efficient.

'And why would I do that?' the other girl asked, her voice icy in retaliation to my commanding tone. I took a small breath before replying, I really didn't want to get on her bad side quite so soon.

'You're the one who kidnapped me,' I exclaimed.

'If that's what you call saving your life multiple times,' she scoffed, indignant that she hadn't done anything wrong.

'You drag me out here without my permission, and I don't even know where we are!' I bit back, the feeling of irritation rising with every word the blonde spoke.

'You shouldn't be complaining, most girls only get invited back after the third date' she replied smoothly, winking meaningfully as I gaped at her in astonishment. What the hell was even happening right now? Shaking my head at the unexpected turn in conversation I attempted to return to my train of thought.

'Please, can you just take me back to the coast?' I asked wearily, tired of the back and forth between the two of us.

'Sure, seeing as you asked so nicely,' she agreed, and it made me wonder what the catch was. I regarded her suspiciously as she adjusted the leather jacket she wore and dropped a pair of sunglasses over her eyes with a mysterious smile.

'Hey, where are you going?' I inquired, twisting in my seat to watch her disappear out into the kitchen and through what I could only assume was the back door. She was so difficult to deal with. The sooner I was back with my family the better. For now I could only wait and hope that she returned.

After at least an hour of mind numbing boredom where I had eventually relented to making up stories for the old occupants of the house did my kidnapper finally return, whistling under her breath as she kicked off her knee high leather boots and unstrapped the blades from her back to place on the small table.

'Where the hell have you been?' I demanded, annoyed that she had just sauntered off without even letting me know. It was also to mask the relief that I felt when I heard her return, no way was she knowing that.

'Why? Missed me?' she purred softly as she passed by the couch, collapsing gracefully down into one seater chair on my right, resting her legs on the arm of the chair as she sprawled over the cushions. Her blades showed no sign of being used so she hadn't encountered any trouble wherever it was she had been.

'You're making it difficult for me to trust you,' I told her, regarding her suspiciously. I knew next to nothing about this girl and she was hardly open regarding her actions.

'I don't need you to trust me, you need a lift and I can provide one,' she said with a smirk, a private joke that I was not included in and I was instantly wary of the meaning behind her words.

'Don't worry, I won't let anything bad happen to you,' she assured me, not that it eased my worries in the slightest.

'Like yesterday, when you killed anything that moved?' I remarked, remembering how effortlessly she had disposed of the walkers and the cruel man. It had hardly seemed real.

'Yeah my bad, I totally should've let that creep haul you off and sell you for a bottle of water,' she said sarcastically, placing her arms behind her head in what looked like quite an uncomfortable position though it didn't seem to bother her in the slightest. 'That is, after I let the walkers devour you.'

Couldn't argue there, a silence fell between us and I couldn't understand why I felt so reluctant to thank this girl for her help. Without her I would not have survived, though something stopped me from expressing my thanks even if I was secretly grateful.

'How do you survive alone?' I asked quietly after a moment, I was so used to having all of the others around me on the boat. My mom, brother, even step-dad. How she could be okay with being so alone I couldn't understand, let alone know where she had picked up such impressive fighting skills.

The girl shifted in the chair and lent forwards, resting her elbows on her knees as if seriously considering how best to answer.

'Being aware of danger at all times, not being afraid of facing impossible situations and being an exceptional fighter with killer looks also helps,' she replied with a wink, kicking her legs up on the chair with a chuckle at her own humor.

'Well someone clearly isn't insecure,' I muttered, annoyed by the girls boasting. It struck me that she had yet to show any kind of vulnerability and a thought occurred to me as I looked up and regarded her closely.

'Is all this just an act? You make yourself seem so invulnerable yet still you saved me. Distancing yourself like this is-'

'Don't act like you know me,' she interrupted sharply, standing abruptly from the chair and leaving the room after sending a chilling glare my way. I had barely started what I was about to say yet it had drawn out such a strong reaction. Whoever this stranger was, there was certainly a lot more to her than she was letting on.

\---

'When do we leave?' I asked tentatively when the girl finally came back down, unsure of where we stood after her earlier outburst.

'Tomorrow morning,' she told me, perching on the arm of the chair as if nothing had ever happened. 'I was on my way to Santa Fe when you showed up, you're lucky I was around.'

'Santa Fe?' I inquired, frowning at her destination. Why was she going so far? 'It'll take you days to travel there.'

'Not from here it won't,' she replied, settling down to pull out her weapons and take stock of how much ammo she still had.

'Wait? What do you mean not from here? Where the hell are we?' I asked, scrunching my face up as her wording caught my attention. For all I knew we were just down the road from where she had picked me up. The girl looked up at me in surprise as if she thought I knew.

'Well you're not in San Diego anymore cutie, this is Arizona,' she told me, looking back down at her weapon as I gaped at her in astonishment.

'Are you serious? What the hell is wrong with you?' I exclaimed, hardly able to believe how far she had taken me from the coast.

'I said I'd take you back didn't I? Hell, as if saving your life wasn't enough,' she bit back, clearly having expected more gratitude. It was hard to be grateful when I was hundreds of miles away from where I needed to be, I wasn't even in the same state as my family. How I had stayed unconscious in the car for so long was beyond me, it would have taken hours to drive such a distance.

\-----------

The next day I woke early, having done nothing but sleep for the last few days. Now I just wanted to get back on the road. More than ready to leave this house behind, I stood from the couch and stretched tentatively, feeling only a slight ache from my ribs as I did. I rifled through the kitchen to find a cereal bar and could do nothing but wait for my companion to rise. I was ready to go up and get her myself when I heard what I assumed was her door open and shut with a click.

'Morning cutie, ready to go?' she said whilst descending the stairs, a smirk forming on her lips when I scowled angrily at her.

'It's Alicia, and I've been ready for hours,' I snapped, annoyed by this girl's carefree attitude. 

'Let's get going then,' she replied brightly, flicking her aviator sunglasses down over her eyes before holstering the hand gun at her waist. Knives strapped to her inner thighs and leather jacket firmly in place she looked like she was born for the apocalypse.

I watched with a confused frown as she walked through the kitchen and out the back door, biting my lip as I followed cautiously behind. I was certain that we had left the rusted car outside the front of the house when we had arrived.

'Hey, what are-' I began, only for my words to die away when I emerged to see the girl leaning casually against the wall of the house next to a gleaming motorbike, blonde hair flowing freely over her shoulders as she waited for my reaction. I had to admit it suited her image perfectly. I gaped in astonishment for a moment before shaking my head clear of any admiring thoughts and realized exactly what was expected of me.

'Your ride awaits,' she said dramatically, gesturing elegantly to the motor bike which she clearly adored. 

'No way in hell,' I objected immediately, no way was I getting on that death trap. The blonde frowned at my refusal as if unable to believe why I would be opposed to the idea.

'You wanted a ride and here it is,' she added, gesturing again to the machine at her side. I shook my head a second time, tensing slightly when the blonde pushed away from the wall and prowled towards me.

'You wouldn't be...scared of anything right?' she asked sweetly, moving out of my line of sight to whisper in my ear as she circled me. I cleared my throat when I felt her breath on the back of my neck. I could only shake my head as she came around to my front again, a half smile on her face as she returned to the bike and pushed it out into the road.

'Then hop on,' she directed, watching through her dark sunglasses as I slowly approached, not wanting to look weak in front of her. She lifted her leg over the seat and settled into place, kicking the bike into life as she gestured for me to do the same. I moved closer to the metal bike as she watched me in the side mirror, hovering my hand over the shining surface before stepping back with a shake of my head.

'Your loss,' she announced, shooting me a roguish smile before the bike roared to life beneath her and the next moment she was off in a blur of blonde hair as she sped down the road, not even glancing back over her shoulder as she disappeared around the corner. The sound of the bike faded into the distance and I gaped after her, unease growing stronger with every second that ticked by. Surely she was not just going to leave me here?

I had almost convinced myself that she was truly gone when she rounded the corner once more, blonde hair flowing wildly at her back, though my relief was short lived when she showed no indication of changing direction and the bike continued to barrel straight towards me.

Jesus, this girl truly was insane I thought in a panic as I jumped clear of the oncoming vehicle, throwing out an arm to catch my fall. Pain shot up my arm at the unplanned landing as the blonde pulled sharply on the handles at the last second, slamming on the brakes as she circled back to where I lay on the ground.

'Shit,' she mumbled, kicking down the stand before hopping off the bike to jog over to me, reaching down to help me up.

'What the hell are you doing? Don't touch me,' I snapped, pulling away from the outstretched hand as I rose somewhat unsteadily to my feet .

'You okay?' she asked with a concerned frown, watching as I rubbed my now tender arm.

'I'd be feeling a whole lot better if someone hadn't just tried to run me down with their motorbike,' I muttered, wincing in pain at my newest injury. 'Let's just get the hell inside before any walkers come to see what the noise was.'

The girl looked like she wanted to say more but merely nodded and led the way back inside.

\------------------

'How's the arm?'

'Hurts,' I told her briefly, still far from pleased about the earlier incident with the bike. I had honestly thought she was going to run me down if she hadn't pulled away at the last second.

'Oh come on, how many more times do you want me to apologize?' she huffed, throwing her arms up in exasperation as she went to and fro, picking up any small items to fit into the already bursting rucksack.

'Until you actually mean it,' I retorted, glaring at the girl as she checked in the drawers under the broken TV for the third time, surprising us both when she pulled out the car keys with a triumphant smile.

'I knew they were here somewhere,' she insisted, because god forbid she put them on the table top like any normal person. In fact I quite clearly remembered her putting them in the kitchen the night we had arrived, so why she had moved them was a complete mystery.

After pocketing the keys in her tight fitting jeans, she threw herself down beside me on the couch with a sigh.

'I really am sorry about your arm, why don't you let me take a look at it?' she offered, turning her head on the plump cushion to face me though I refused to even look at her. Sensing my continued annoyance she twisted in the chair so that her whole body was tilted towards me.

'It's perfectly fine,' I told her, relaxing my arm in an attempt to show that there was no need for any poking and prodding on her part. It soon backfired when a sharp pain shot up from my wrist and I drew in a sharp breath as she continued to watch me patiently.

Sighing in defeat, I finally relented with a small nod and she scooted even closer to gently look over my arm, her eyes focused in concentration. I glanced over as she worked; surprised to see her usual tough exterior fall away as she became distracted in her evaluation and again I wondered where she had picked up her medical knowledge.

A twinge of pain burned through my thoughts and I jerked my arm back as the girl smiled apologetically, rising to her feet as I rubbed my arm irritably.

'Nothing broken or in need of amputation so good news, it's just a sprain, though I would recommend wearing a sling for a few days,' she reported, not waiting for a response before she shot upstairs and came running back down with a piece of ripped material in her hands, wrapping it over my arm and shoulder before I could even protest.

'All good to go,' she said with a broad smile once the sling was in place, walking into the kitchen to strap the two blades across her back and equip herself with the wide array of knives that she was in possession of. 

I pulled myself up from the couch and was only waiting for a few moments before she came back in, looking ready for a war as she bent to pick up the bag of spare weapons and slung the backpack over her shoulder.

'I'm telling you right now that there is no way in hell I am getting on the back of that metal machine, so if-

'Jeez Alicia, no need for lecture, we're taking the car so don't stress yourself,' she cut in, gesturing for me to follow her out of the house. Glancing up to the end of the street I saw a group of walkers ambling down towards us, pointing them out to the blonde as she came out behind me.

'Looks like they heard you complaining from miles away,' she teased lightly, pausing at the bottom of the steps before quickly running back to lock the door, shoving the keys away as I continued on to where the car was parked a few metres away. I didn't know why she bothered to lock up the house, I supposed it was a sense of normality from the old world that we all wanted to cling to.

I stopped abruptly on the pavement as a thought occurred to me, and I heard the blonde swear softly when she collided straight into my back, placing a hand on my shoulder to steady us both before sidestepping around me to the rusted car.

'What the hell is your problem?' she inquired as I watched her circle to the driver side of the car, keeping my gaze on her as I moved to the opposite side of the vehicle.

'I still don't know your name,' I said, wondering how I had been in her presence for so long without even thinking to ask. She glanced over her shoulder to where the walkers where steadily approaching before turning back to me impatiently.

'It's Elyza, now get in the goddamn car,' she growled, sliding into her seat and slamming the door shut as I followed suit, my door barely closing as the engine stuttered to life and we were quickly pulling away from the house and oncoming walkers.

Leave a comment and let me know what you thought :)


	3. The Journey

'Elyza?'

'What?'

'Could you please slow down?'

My hand gripped the door handle for dear life as the landscape flew by in a blur. This was the third time I had asked, Elyza insisting each time that her driving was perfectly safe and that I was worrying about nothing. We had pulled away from the smaller residential roads and were on the highway in a matter of minutes after leaving the house, giving her greater freedom to increase our speed even with the collection of abandoned cars that stretched on for miles. I had only just about managed to get the seat belt over my sling and each time the car hit a bump in the road we were both jolted from the impact.

'I wasn't even going that fast,' she grumbled quietly, thankfully easing off the accelerator and we slowed to a more acceptable speed. How the old car survived this brutal treatment I would never know.

'I thought you were desperate to get back to your family?' she commented, as if that was her reasoning behind the insane speed we had just been going at.

'It's rather pointless if I die in a car crash before even getting back in the same state as them,' I pointed out, already having had a minor attack of nerves when a walker staggered into the road and the only thing that prevented a collision was a sharp tug on the steering wheel that I could've sworn almost had us up on two wheels to narrowly avoid the mess on the windscreen.

'You need to work on something called positivity,' Elyza said dryly, keeping her eyes on the road ahead as I ignored her and lent forwards to delve through the glove box.

Under a pile of carrier bags and old manuals I pulled free a map, coughing slightly at the cloud of dust that came along with it. I unfolded the paper and wasn't surprised to find that it was now illegible, the marks having faded so badly that you could hardly recognise the location.

I shoved it back into the glove box and sat back in my seat with a sigh, realising that this was going to be a long journey and this time I wasn't unconscious for it.

'Seriously, you should at least try a smile. Free ride, great company, what's not to love?' Eliza spoke up, not that her advice was at all wanted. I remained silent and stared out of the window, after being out at sea for so long it was easy to forget how devastated the land was and that it wasn't getting any better.

The landscape around us was dry and arid, nothing even remotely interesting to look at other than the occasional walker that could be seen ambling amongst the sparse covering of green plants. The boat had been an escape from the terrible reality but it couldn't be avoided forever, it was something I would have to start getting used to.

I glanced back over at my companion, still finding it strange to think that I had only known her for a few days and not under the best circumstances. 

'I can be fun you know,' I said abruptly, not sure why I felt it necessary to make such a statement.

'I'm sure you can, it's not like it's the end of the world or anything,' she said lightly, smiling to herself as I shook my head at her rather unique sense of humour.

'You said the other day that you were on your way to Santa Fe before you came across me, why there?' I inquired, hoping that some conversation would help to pass the time.

I almost regretted asking the question when the smile fell from her face in an instant, silence falling for a few long moments until I gave up expecting a reply.

'I didn't always survive alone, there were a few others that I had contact with but we had to go our separate ways,' she finally explained, her expression unreadable underneath the sunglasses. 'Sante Fe was our rendezvous point, I was going to see if anyone had made it.'

I hadn't been expecting such a personal story, surprised that Elyza had opened up to me without any sarcastic remarks or clever comments. It seemed that she did not wish to dwell on the matter and I did not push my luck with further questions.

'How about you? What's your story mysterious girl?' she asked with a grin, deflecting the attention back to me and I felt that she deserved an honest response after her contribution.

'We met a man named Strand and my family and some friends are traveling with him out at sea,' I explained, going on to tell her about how we had stopped off to make a supply run when Nick and I had been attacked.

'You miss him, your brother,' Elyza noted when my story was over, she knew the rest of it from there.

'I miss all of them.'

Even Travis who I had never had the closest of bonds with but mostly my family, and I was looking forward to finally seeing them once again. A smile spread across my face at the thought and I caught Elyza watching me from the corner of my eye.

'So you do know how to smile,' she said, turning her own grin back to the road as she pulled the car away from the main road and down some smaller streets, passing some diners that were almost unrecognisable in their current condition. I frowned in confusion at the sudden change in direction, even more so when we pulled into a small parking area.

'What are we doing here?' I asked, glancing around at our surroundings but seeing no reason why we had stopped. We had only been on the road for less than an hour so we still had a fair distance to go.

'I thought now would be the perfect time to get you some new clothes,' Elyza replied, pulling the keys from the ignition as she turned to face me. I glanced down at my dishevelled shirt and realised that she had a point. As much as I wanted to drive straight back to my family I knew that this was a necessary stop.

'Besides,' she continued as she twisted towards me, taking the sunglasses from her face to reveal the glimmer of excitement in her eyes. 'Who doesn't enjoy a post-apocalyptic shopping trip?'

I found myself returning her contagious smile before she flung the driver's door open and wasted no time in heading straight for the closest store.

I jumped up out of the car in pursuit, jogging at first to catch up with her long strides before settling into a fast walk. It appeared to be a multipurpose store inside but I could already make out the large selection of clothing that they had on display around the back half of the building.

I was about to point it out to Elyza when she slammed her knuckles down onto the door frame at her side a few times, hard enough for the sound to echo out through the store.

'What the hell are you doing?' I hissed, glancing around nervously as if a sudden tide of the undead were about to emerge from the aisles.

'Better they come to us now then we stumble across them later,' she reasoned, both of us waiting in a tense silence for a few moments without hearing a single groan.

'Looks like we're all clear,' Elyza said, making her way through the ransacked aisles to where the clothes section was located. A lot of it had already been taken and most of the material was unusable though there were still some items left intact. I went for the more casual clothing and wasn't surprised to see Elyza make her way over to the leather jackets.

It didn't take me long to pick out a similar shirt to the one I was wearing, no patterns on this one as I found a similar jacket to go over it. My jeans weren't looking too bad but after some searching I managed to find a spare pair that I could keep for later, even if they did have the ripped, distressed look that I wouldn't normally go for.

Footsteps at my back alerted me to Elyza's approach and I turned to see her with a new jacket on her shoulders, a spare pair of aviators hanging in her grip as she gave me a slow spin.

'Not too bad huh?' she said almost to herself, and I found myself continuing to stare even as she glanced back up at me for a response.

'Uh, yeah, you look good,' I said weakly, wondering if there would ever be anyone else in existence who could pull off such a striking outfit so well.

'I see your taste in fashion has little variation,' she noted, looking down at the plain shirt and jeans that I held. 'Sure I can't tempt you with something more...bold?'

I shook my head at the suggestion, imagining how ridiculous I would look even attempting such an outfit. New clothes in hand, I glanced around the store looking for the changing rooms and finally located them on the opposite wall.

'You don't have to be so modest Alicia,' the blonde said when she saw what I was intending to do. 'You might need some help into that shirt anyway.'

I didn't detect any underlying meaning to her words as she gestured to the sling and although she had a point, I was more comfortable changing somewhere other than in this wide, open space. I shook my head, sidestepping around her without bothering to attempt a reply.

'Just shout if you need any help,' she called after me as I carried the clothes past the overturned trolley to where the changing rooms were located. At the end of a short corridor I came to the door which which would take me inside, a fallen shelf blocking my path as it rested against the frame.

Without too much difficulty I managed to heave the structure out of the way by pressing my entire weight against it, careful not to put any pressure on my sprained arm in the process.

I pulled the door open and slipped into the first changing room on my right, pulling the thick curtain across the entrance. It wasn't like there was anyone else around but it was familiar, an action that seemed odd now in such different circumstances.

Gently laying the sling down onto the small bench behind me, I went about struggling out of the ripped shirt which was surprisingly difficult to achieve without causing further pain to my arm.

Pulling the material over my head, I dropped it carelessly on the floor, not having any future need of it. The cold breeze in the store hit my body and with a shiver I set about my next task of changing into the new shirt.

I was soon beginning to regret turning down Elyza's offer of help and was considering calling for her when I finally got the damn thing over my head and slipped my arms in with only the slightest twinge of pain.

'You okay in there?' I heard Elyza call from out in the main shopping area, realising that I had probably taken quite a bit of time just to change a top.

'Yeah, all good,' I shouted back, lowering myself down onto the bench as I tried not to look in the direction of the dark stain that stood out on the white painted wall to my left. There were many different things that it could have been but I couldn't quite convince myself that it wasn't blood.

After shrugging back into my jacket my senses picked up a faint shuffling sound as I froze in place, holding my breath as I listened intently to the sound. Surely it was just the material curtains brushing against the wall but when a small moan sounded it became apparent that there had been a large shelf blocking the entrance to these changing rooms for a reason.

Bolting to my feet I grabbed the spare jeans and slowly slipped out from behind the curtain, not seeing any signs of the undead until one of the curtains shifted aside and a walker stumbled out of the cubicle, it's head swinging from side to side before it's hungry gaze fell on me.

The small moan quickly grew into a harsher groan as it began to drag itself towards me, a rather distorted right leg hindering its movement. I was in the process of turning back to the exit when a chorus of moans filled the air, clearly not just the one walker in here as I had assumed.

Glancing back over my shoulder I saw another three of the creatures emerge from behind the curtains, not moving anywhere near as slow as the first. The stores general employee uniform could be seen on each one, name tags still attached to the ripped, blood spattered material and I didn't hang around to let them get any closer.

Retracing my steps back out into the small corridor I went flying when I tripped over the corner of the shelf, my right foot catching on the metal surface as I ran by. Twisting to avoid falling on my injured arm I managed to push myself upright a moment later and heard the shuffling steps at my back as I emerged into the larger space of the main store.

Fear began to creep in when Elyza was nowhere to be seen, not picking through the leather clothes or leaning casually against the wall. Now I had group of walkers at my back and no weapons to fight them with. Glancing around desperately, I knelt to pull free a pole that had once been used to hang the unwanted clothes, brandishing it in my grip as I spun back to the walkers.

Every sense was screaming at me to run but I wasn't going to get far without Elyza, she had the keys after all and no way was I going to leave this place without her.

'Come on then,' I whispered, tightening my grip on the pole as the walker reached out its mangled hands towards me, mouth wide as it emitted a never ending slur of sounds. It was close enough that I was able to read the name tag and I almost wished that I hadn't. My resolve faltered when I saw that the letters spelt  _Angela,_ she had been a person once.

 _Not any more,_ I reminded myself, and as the blood stained figure got within a few meters of my reach I swung the pole with all my might, sending it crashing into the side of her head with a chilling crack. Even with only one hand on the pole it served well enough and Angela toppled to the side, far from being finished off as she tried to regain her balance.

It soon became apparent that my pole was in no way suited to taking down these walkers and it was most likely only good for prolonging my survival until they managed to overcome me with their numbers. I backed up against the far wall, my arm beginning to shake as I contemplated my options, my thoughts instantly turning to the blonde who I couldn't bring myself to abandon.

I was saved having to make a hard decision when a gunshot sounded and the slowest walker collapsed with a bullet hole between the eyes. Relief coursed through me when the second one fell with a similar injury, snapped from my stupor when Angela lurched forwards without warning and I had to lift my pole in a hurry to ward her off.

The metal pressing against her collar bone was the only thing keeping her snapping jaws from latching around my throat and even after just a few seconds I could feel my grip weaken as she threw her weight towards me. The struggle was over rather abruptly when a blade was thrust into the back of her head, the tip visibly protruding through her eye socket until it was pulled free and I used the pole to push it back, the corpse's entire body weight sending it toppling backwards, down to the floor.

I heaved in a deep breath now that the walkers were taken care of, raising my gaze to meet the glimmering annoyance that shone in Elyza's eyes as she wiped the blade clean and strapped the sword back over her shoulders with a scowl.

'What is actually wrong with you?' she muttered, taking a few long strides to stand directly opposite me, barely aware of her close invasion of my personal space.

'What?' I breathed in response, not understanding what had made her so upset.

'If you see the undead lumbering towards you then you run idiot! Especially when you don't have a hope in hell of defending yourself,' she growled, gesturing to the rather pathetic pole that was still gripped in my hand.

I let it fall to the floor and glared back up at the disapproving blonde, not caring that she was most likely right.

'I stayed for you, I wasn't just going to run off and leave you here,' I told her, wanting to defend my decision to stand my ground.The least she could do was keep her temper in check.

'In case you hadn't noticed by now, I am perfectly capable of taking care of myself,' she retorted confidently, referring to the mass of weapons that she kept herself defended with. 'You had an injured arm, a pole and no fighting skills. I know whose survival I would bet on.'

Her words angered me, knowing full well that she was right but hating how useless she made me sound. My mother thought that I was incapable of handling dangerous situations and here this girl was virtually repeating her words.

We remained in a tense silence for a moment longer, exchanging heated glares and it was some time before I realized how badly I was shaking, my good hand clenched into a fist in an attempt to hide the movement. Of course no details slipped past Elyza who sighed and took a step back, softening her gaze as she reigned in her anger.

'I'm not trying to be cruel Alicia but you shouldn't have put yourself in danger like that, especially not for me,' she said in a calmer voice, glancing around at the bodies that littered the floor. Her face screwed up in disgust when she caught sight of the stains now covering her shoes.

'All over my new damn boots as well,' she complained, lifting one foot to glance closer at the blood spatters that decorated the dark material. I released my own anger and decided to put the whole event behind me, choosing to just be thankful that Elyza had turned up when she had.

I bent to pick up the jeans and jacket that I had dropped to the ground during my hasty flight from the walkers, both of us then making our way back to where the car was parked outside the store. I climbed into the passenger side and was about to pull the door shut when Elyza placed her hand on the door frame to prevent it from closing.

'You might want to clean your face up a bit before we get back on the road,' Elyza suggested, and glancing in the side mirror I saw the spatters of blood over my cheek and forehead that must have occurred when the blade pierced the walkers skull at such close contact. Grimacing at the sight, Elyza motioned for me to remain still whilst she searched around in the rucksack for a bottle of water, grabbing an old shirt from the bag before drenching it with the liquid.

I shifted in the seat so that I was facing out into the parking lot, Elyza bending slightly in front of me to gently wipe the stains from my face. I remained perfectly still as she did, my eyes trained on her focused expression whilst the cloth cleared the worst of the blood from my skin.

She didn't move once finished, discarding the cloth onto the ground without taking a step back. I was surprised when she reached down and took my free hand in hers, easing the slight tremor that had persisted since the encounter with the walkers in the store.

'It's okay to be frightened you know,' she told me, not looking up as she spoke. 

'You're not,' I commented, not seeing even a hint of fear when she had to face danger. I doubted there was anything that truly scared her and it certainly wasn't walkers.

'I've had far more experience with them,' she said with a small smile, lifting her eyes to mine. 'If you ever want to talk, I know how hard it can be to deal with at times.'

I was taken aback by her offer and merely nodded, not knowing that she had such a gentle side but it seemed there was a lot more to her lying under the layers of sarcasm and humor. Elyza flashed me a broad smile before releasing my hand and moving around to her own side of the car, seemingly back to her usual outgoing self.

'Let's get back on the road, I think that's enough excitement for one day,' she said once we were back in the car, raising her hips slightly to dig the keys out of her back pocket. 'And you owe me a new pair of boots.'

I grinned at the comment, settling into my seat as she twisted the keys in the ignition, the car sputtering into life and we set off once more, leaving the gruesome events of the store behind us.

_Thank you for reading, leave a comment and tell me what you thought! :)_


	4. Road Trip

I was grateful to be back in the car for a change, still feeling somewhat shaken after the close encounter at the store. We remained quiet as we continued our journey through Arizona, not bothering to stop when we passed a deserted Walmart, Elyza sensing that I was not willing to waste any more time on stop offs.

'Do you have any more cereal bars left?' I inquired, feeling the all too familiar ache of hunger returning. Elyza nodded and gestured back to where the bag lay on the floor behind her chair. I twisted in my seat, careful of the sling as I reached out my other arm in an attempt to grab the supplies. Not wanting to remove my seat belt, I shifted in my seat and stretched even further, feeling my shirt begin to ride up as I tilted my body towards the back seats. I felt the car swerve noticeably and the unexpected movement gave me the reach I needed to grasp the material with my outstretched fingers, pulling the bag triumphantly through the gap between the seats and into my lap.

'Damn Alicia, I'm trying to be a safe driver here as requested and all you can do is distract me,' she teased, reaching out a hand in request for a cereal bar as I located them in the front pocket. With only one hand on the wheel, she skilfully tore into the packet with her teeth and set about eating as I did the same, setting the rucksack down by my feet before turning to face out of the window.

The desert had tailed off into a suburban town which was slightly more interesting to drive through with it's collection of small stores and deserted buildings. Staring out over the landscape was almost peaceful as the car rumbled through the streets and I found my eyes flickering shut despite the lengthy sleep I had only recently had.

'You should get some sleep,' Elyza suggested gently at my side, having noticed my attempts to keep my eyes open. 'I'll wake you in a few hours when we stop for the night.'

Sinking back into a more comfortable position I let my head fall back against the headrest and allowed my eyes to close, letting my tiredness envelop me. It usually took me a while to fall asleep but somehow, even in the moving vehicle, it didn't take long for the world to fall away.

I woke with a jolt when the rumbling of the engine cut out beneath me and with bleary eyes I glanced around to take note of where we were. The daylight was fading but even in the dim light I was able to make out the lack of buildings surrounding us as the sandy landscape stretched out for miles around. Wonderful, I thought bitterly, just some more damn desert.

'Elyza?' I muttered, my voice raspy as I came to from my sleep, turning my head to see the driver seat empty. My eyes quickly widened at her absence and, grogginess quickly overcome, I snapped the seat belt free and staggered out of the car into the unforgiving heat of the desert.

'Elyza?' I called out again, starting to feel slightly panicked as I spun around without seeing any sign of the blonde girl. Had she parked us up in the middle of nowhere just to leave me here? Surely not I thought, pushing aside the ridiculous thought and walked a short distance down the road, calling for the girl as I went. My gaze fell on an abandoned motor home, most likely having broken down on the side of the road. I approached it cautiously, still glancing around for signs of Elyza. 

A scream caught in my throat when a figure jumped down from the doorway of the lone motor home, quickly recognizing it to be my traveling companion even as my heart pounded furiously in my chest.

'Jesus, you are going to be the death of us if you keep shouting like that,' she warned, pushing the sunglasses up onto her face as she observed my worried expression. 

'You left me,' I accused, feeling my nerves diminishing now that I had found the girl, not knowing what I would have done if she truly had disappeared.

'Hardly, I was just searching this beauty for any leftover supplies whilst you slept,' she retorted, moving past me to where the car had been left unattended. I followed close behind, still irritated that she had not woken me before going off on her own but knew that there was no real reason to hold a grudge. I was just sick of the endless traveling.

'So where are we?' I finally asked her, lifting my good arm to rub at my aching neck, my body stiff from my rest in the car. I really didn't want to make a habit of it, I probably wasn't going to sleep tonight now.

'You'll be pleased to know that we crossed over into California a little over an hour ago,' Elyza called over her shoulder, pulling open the boot when we arrived back at the parked car. I couldn't help but smile at the news; we were finally back in the right state. Finding my family again had only seemed like a distant hope before now, and it felt like I wouldn't have to wait much longer to be reunited with them.

I broke out of my trance and turned my focus back to Elyza who was pulling some blankets from the boot of the car where they had been stuffed into a partially destroyed box, the cardboard ripped along one side with a line of tape holding the entire thing together.

I frowned at the action, realizing that this must be the place we were stopping for the night, it was best to get somewhere before night fell and the light was lost entirely. The problem was I couldn't see a suitable building anywhere on the side of the road.

'I hope you don't mind sleeping in the car again,' Elyza said before I could ask the question, not sounding like it would make any difference either way. She asked where I would prefer to sleep, throwing a blanket into the backseat when I shrugged, informing me that it would be easier to get comfy if I was spread out across the seats.

Not bothering to argue, I climbed into the back of the car as Elyza returned to the driver side, tipping the seat back to recline more comfortably. I had no idea what time it was but from the lack of light I guessed it was drawing into the evening.

'Could you not have found us an actual house to stay in?' I grumbled, not looking forward to even more time spent inside this metal prison.

'I have no idea when we will come across the next town, so unless you'd rather search around a possibly walker infested building in complete darkness then this will have to do for tonight,' Elyza countered, and with a defeated sigh I had no choice but to accept that there was little choice in the matter.

The blankets were more for comfort than warmth as the temperature during the night in summer was rarely cool, not needing any further layers to remain warm. If anything it would most likely get too hot with both of us cramped in the car, windows firmly shut to deter any walkers that might be close by.

'How much longer do you think we'll be traveling for?' I inquired, remaining upright in the middle seat as I considered how soon we would make it back to San Diego.

'We're about halfway back from where I picked you up, so most likely tomorrow afternoon,' Elyza guessed, depending on if we ran into any problems on the way. Excitement bubbled in my chest at the prospect of seeing my family again as soon as the next day. I couldn't even think of any other possibility.

'Well I'm exhausted,' Elyza admitted, and I realized that she hadn't slept half has much as I had recently and wasn't surprised that she was so tired. She spread the blanket out on the seat and lent back against the head rest, eyes closing as she withdrew from the conversation. I noticed that a handgun remained in her lap, close enough to grab if anything attacked in the night. She was always prepared for any scenario and I supposed that I could learn a thing or two from her.

I figured that it would be an early start the next morning and decided to take Elyza's lead and get some rest, which would have been a lot easier if I hadn't already slept the day away. It was frustrating to be left with nothing but my thoughts to keep me company but after a few hours of tossing and turning, jumping at the slightest sound in fear that it would be a walker did I finally fall asleep.

\-----

Elyza's POV

My hand went to the gun in my lap the second I woke early the next morning, instantly searching for any danger but finding none. Glancing over my shoulder I relaxed when I saw Alicia lying out peacefully over the back seats, her chest rising and falling with each steady breath. It surprised me how much the girl seemed to sleep but after the events of the last few days I could hardly blame her.

Turning back in my seat again I decided to give her a little longer in the bliss that sleep brought, taking you far from the reality that was now life. There was something about her that I was drawn to, her innocence constantly making me wish that she did not have to be swept up in this shit storm of an apocalypse.

It was beginning to get lighter outside and I quietly opened my door, careful to make as little noise possible so as not to wake Alicia. This was our final day of traveling and I didn't even want to think about what would happen later that afternoon. It would be great reuniting Alicia with her family once more, but I doubted that I would see her again after that. From what she had told me, her family seemed like respectable people though they were rightly wary and would not want a stranger who had kidnapped their daughter tagging along with the group.

I had grown strangely accustomed to having the brunette in my company, even if she did just end up getting herself into trouble the majority of the time. It was good not to be alone anymore. Leaving the door open to allow some fresh air to flow into the stuffy vehicle, I moved to the bonnet and easily maneuvered myself up so that I was sat on the metal cover, legs drawn up as I lent back on my hands to soak in what warmth I could from the faint rays of light, enjoying the freedom before having to return inside the car once more.

As the minutes slipped by I hadn't realized Alicia was awake until I heard the door click open and a few seconds later she rounded the side of the car and managed to clamber up beside me. I opened my eyes, not having bothered with the sunglasses and turned my face to smile at the girl. It turned into a frown when I saw that the sling was no longer in place, knowing it would be better for her to wear it for at least another day to ensure it healed without delay.

'My arm feels better now,' she explained, noticing the direction of my gaze and reached her arm out in front of her body, turning it this way and that as if to demonstrate.

'If you say so,' I chuckled, gently pulling her arm back down before she hurt it all over again. She appeared far happier today than she had recently, most likely thoughts of her family in mind.

'You're up early,' she commented, hugging her knees to her chest as she gazed down the seemingly endless road ahead of us. I caught myself glancing at her and focused my eyes forwards, wondering what it was about this girl that captured my attention.

'Must have been your non stop snoring that woke me,' I teased, suppressing a smile when Alicia turned her face to gawp at me. 'Then there was the drool, and the way you kept saying my name was rather distracting.'

Alicia turned a shade of red at my remark and slapped my arm lightly as she protested that she didn't snore, to which I raised an eyebrow and nodded slowly with a grin. That earned me another playful slap on the arm but it was in good humor and with a chuckle I gracefully slid off the bonnet and turned back to hold out my hand to Alicia.

'Ready to get back on the road?' I inquired, grasping her hand when she reached out and climbed down from atop the car with a bright smile.

'Let's go,' she replied, squeezing my hand lightly for a second before moving over to her side of the car. I was frozen for a moment, shaking myself out of the trance to return to the driver side, readjusting the seat to a more upright position before we set off.

Alicia POV

The desert stretched around us for miles and I could imagine how easy it would be to lose yourself in a place like this. It was a relief to be back in California and even with the multiple hours of traveling that we had left before seeing my family once more, it was more bearable knowing how close we were.

Nick would have made it back to the small boat to meet with the others; maybe they had searched the streets for me when the walkers had moved on. My mom would've been in such a panic when they returned to Strand's boat with one missing, I could imagine her reaction clearly enough.

The first hour passed fairly quickly as row after row of what was once agricultural fields lined the road, quickly having become overgrown without regular maintenance. All too soon we were back to the familiar barren land of the desert and boredom quickly set in once more.

Elyza had barely spoken a word since we had set off and I could tell something was bothering her though she would not admit it, lacking any conversation to pass the time. I threw my head back against the headrest with a sigh, finally drawing her gaze which had been previously focused on the road.

'I'm bored,' I stated, rolling down my window to allow a breeze to roll through the vehicle.

'I'd forgotten what a pain in the ass it is to have a passenger,' she pretended to complain, though I could tell that she secretly enjoyed the company. Another thing she would not admit.

'I believe there's a CD in the glove box under all that junk if you want some music,' Elyza finally replied, and I perked up at the mention of music, it had been far too long since I had listened to any.

I lent forwards eagerly and clicked open the draw, rifling through the old bags and wrappers to find a dusty CD located under the illegible map. I pulled it free with a smile, it was blank so I assumed it was personalized by whoever had previously owned the car and I could only hope that they had a good taste in music.

After slotting it into the player, the disk whirred for a few seconds and I was convinced it wasn't going to work until finally a faint guitar intro was heard bleeding through the speakers. I smiled stupidly just to hear any kind of music again but jumped in surprise when Elyza reached out and casually turned the volume three quarters of the way up so that the easily recognizable Nirvana tune was blaring so loud that the sound was somewhat distorted by the old speakers.

'Seriously?' I shouted to be heard over the din, quickly returning the volume to a more manageable level, very aware that anyone or thing in the surrounding area would quickly be drawn to our vehicle at this rate.

Elyza sighed in exasperation at my wariness, notching up the volume again but nowhere near as loud. 'You need to stop worrying so much, might as well enjoy the apocalypse.'

I huffed at her carefree attitude, she was seriously going to get me killed one day. Looking back out of the window I ignored the girl as she hummed absentmindedly along to the song, tapping her fingers against the steering wheel when the All American Rejects came up next, her head nodding along to the beat simultaneously.

It was a good few songs into the playlist when I abandoned my irritation and couldn't help but smile when Bon Jovi blasted out of the speakers and Elyza started singing along, raising her voice to belt out the chorus to _Living on a Prayer._

_**Take my hand,** _

_**We'll make it I swear,** _

_**Woo-** _ _**oo** _

_**Livin** _ _**' on a prayer** _

I lost my composure entirely at that point and let out a laugh as she rocked out to the guitar solo, her blonde hair flicking through the air and it was a miracle that she was still able to drive us in a somewhat straight line.

Elyza had a grin on her face as I chuckled, she certainly didn't hold back when the moment was called for. She pushed her aviators up slightly after they slipped, and glancing out of the window I almost jumped in excitement when I recognized the area that we were passing through.

'This is Pine Valley,' I exclaimed, reaching out to grab Elyza's arm on reflex to get her attention as I looked out over the familiar streets.

'Whoa, you want us to crash?' she responded, very nearly ploughing us into a parked lorry when my sudden grip jerked the wheel slightly. I mumbled an apology but kept my eyes fixed outside, recognizing the various supermarkets and diners that I had once passed before the world went to shit.

We passed a speed limit sign indicating 55 even though we were going well over 60, no point following the limits anymore. I frowned when I saw the small pointer receding as the car slowed, glancing enquiringly at Elyza when we rolled to a stop at the side of the road.

'What now?' I asked, frustrated to be stopping when we were so close to our destination.

'Car still needs fuel unless you want to walk the rest of the way,' she told me, my confusion increasing even further though she was out of the car before I could question her further. It hadn't occurred to me how we were going to refuel; we could hardly pull up at the nearest gas station.

'Where do we get the fuel from?' I inquired, stepping out of the car to watch what Elyza was doing, not knowing half as much about the process as I would've liked.

'I used my last stash to get us this far, we could've stopped off at some farms along the way, they usually have fuel stored for their vehicles but I didn't think you would want to waste that much time,' she explained, moving around to open the boot of the car. 'That leaves us with option B.'

'And what is option B?' I asked, frowning when she pulled out a long, narrow tube and a plastic container.

'You keep watch and let me worry about that,' she said briefly, moving away to where the nearest abandoned vehicle was located just down the road. I sighed at her vague reply, not sure what it was I was meant to be looking out for in this deserted area but lent against the car to look out over the road, occasionally focusing on whatever it was that Elyza was doing.

She shoved one end of the pipe into the tank, surprising me when she placed the other end in her mouth, screwing her face up in disgust a few seconds later before dropping the end into the container on the ground.

I shook my head at the madness of the situation, it didn't look like a pleasant experience and I turned my eyes back to the road, crossing my arms over my chest to wait as Elyza moved further down the road to a second car and repeated the process.

My attention was drawn to sounds that I, at first, thought were merely drawn from my imagination but it soon became apparent that the pounding of frantic steps and moans of the undead were very much real.

I turned my head to where, a few meters down the main stretch of road behind me, a smaller track led off between the tufts of dry grass and sparse trees where a fenced gate marked the boundary of a nearby private property. I pushed away from the car in surprise when a figure came barrelling down the path on the opposite side of the fence, limping slightly from an injury to her upper leg.

'Elyza!' I called out, desperately turning to wave at the girl and draw her attention. She soon noticed my frantic movement and with the tube and container dangling in one hand she immediately set out at a jog back towards me.

Swiveling on my heels I saw the women reach the fence and let out a distressed cry as she was unable to open it, whipping her head around to see a mass of at least six walkers shuffling down the path towards her. She had no choice but to try and climb the obstacle.

Elyza arrived at my side a second later, slightly breathless from the run as she noticed where my gaze lay and swore softly under her breath. I lurched forwards with the intention of helping the woman when she grabbed my arm and pulled me back roughly.

'Don't even think about it Alicia,' she growled, maintaining her grip on my arm for a moment longer before stepping back to shove the container and pipe back into the boot. I hesitated at her warning, looking back at the women who was now halfway up the fence, her eyes catching mine as she noticed our presence.

I couldn't stand by any longer when she began to plead for help, her eyes wild with panic as she attempted to haul herself higher over the fence even when her injured leg made it almost impossible. Ignoring Elyza's protest I stepped around to the side of the car and pulled free a blade from the bag in the back seat, striding purposefully to the side of the road when she grabbed my arm for the second time.

'We need to leave. Now.'

I attempted to shake free of her grip but she was deceptively strong and had no intention of letting me aid this women.

'What the hell is wrong with you?' I snapped, turning on her in irritation, not understanding why she was so set on fleeing. 'We have to help her!'

'No, we need to leave so get in the car,' she told me in a commanding tone, and I bristled at the order, no way was I just leaving that poor woman. It wasn't so long ago that Elyza had saved me from a similar situation so I didn't see what was so different now.

I twisted without warning and managed to rip my arm free from her grasp, the woman's cries filling the air as I finally began making my way towards her. Elyza cursed loudly at my back and I heard her steps thudding on the ground after me as I ran to the path, but it didn't matter now as I stopped dead at the side of the road, eyes locking with the screaming lady as a walker latched its teeth around her ankle and another grasped her injured leg, hauling her back down as they gathered around their victim with a collection of groans.

A sickening symphony of tearing flesh and crunching bone was soon heard as the cries died away and I remained frozen in place, unable to look away, barely aware of Elyza approaching at my side.

'Alicia, we really need to go,' she said, the urgency in her tone breaking through my shock as I let her drag me back to the car and shove me into the passenger side.

Glancing in the side mirror I noticed the horde of walkers that was ambling down the highway behind us, explaining the previous urgent tone that Elyza had spoken with. The car took a moment to rumble into life before the blonde put her foot down and we tore down the road, away from the horror that had just taken place.

**_Leave a comment and let me know what you thought :)_ **


	5. Cold

With fuel running low we were only traveling for another ten minutes before the engine gave out completely, but it was enough to distance ourselves from the walkers. Elyza jumped out of the car to refill the engine as I continued to stare straight ahead, feeling sick to the stomach by what I had just witnessed.

Soon enough we were back on the road and I felt Elyza glance over at me every now and again in the tense silence, opening her mouth as if to speak but then thinking better of it. It reminded me of the time during the earlier days when I had not been aware of the situation and had seen my neighbors being attacked, my first instinct had been to run out and help them though my mom had quickly stopped me from leaving the house.

It was a bitter realization that more deaths would surely come, though it gave me even more cause to want to help people when possible. Elyza had barely hesitated in her decision to leave the women, a choice I would not have willingly made.

'You're not still mad at me about earlier right?' Elyza finally asked, taking her eyes from the road to look over in my direction.

I remained in a sullen silence, unable to forget the fear filled expression as the women had been overrun by the undead. There had been the faintest trace of hope in her eyes when she had spotted us, hope that these strangers would have the heart to save her from the almost certain death.

'Fine, play it that way then, we're about half an hour away,' she said stiffly, returning her gaze to the road when I said nothing in response.

'You left her to die,' I said quietly, not having the energy to shout and scream at the girl.

'We left her,' Elyza corrected me, 'and there was nothing that we could've done to help her.'

'You don't know that,' I argued, had she actually tried there was always the possibility. Now we would never know.

'She was covered in blood, most likely bitten by one of those fuckers and even if by some miracle we had managed to get her over that damn fence then she would've turned and attacked us in thanks.'

I bit back the torrent of harsh words that would only escalate the situation, there was no way we could've known if she was bitten.

'She probably would have shot us both with that shotgun strapped across her back before stealing my car,' Elyza continued, and I didn't bother to correct the fact that the stolen car could not be considered hers. 'Besides, the mass of walkers descending on us put us in a bit of a tight spot.'

'You're the bad ass blonde with an arsenal of weapons on hand, are you saying you couldn't handle some of the undead?' I asked tightly, not willing to accept that we had been in any immediate danger.

'Oh, I can handle anything thrown at me, even a feisty brunette with a bad attitude,' she replied easily, winking meaningfully behind her aviators. I ground my teeth in annoyance at how quickly she had managed to interrupt such a serious conversation. 

'You could've saved her,' I said sharply, refusing to be drawn away from the topic.

'She was a stranger, we had no choice and you know it,' she told me firmly, a hint of annoyance in her voice at my persistence. It was the first time she had truly showed any emotion since it had happened and I wasn't done pushing yet.

'So was I once, then you saved me and here I am, why is that so different?' I went on, my situation not having been so far off until Elyza had jumped in all guns blazing.

'You weren't bitten, and from the way you managed to miss that walker three times with a handgun I was pretty certain you weren't going to be a problem,' she said with a sigh, drumming her fingers on the wheel to let out some of her own frustration.

'Not all people are out to do you harm, maybe you should have some more faith in humanity,' I suggested, not prepared for the blaze of anger that ripped across her face at my words.

'I lost all faith in humanity the day a band of raiders burst into my home and shot my mom dead right in front of me,' she snarled, clenching the wheel tightly as I remained silent, not wanting to enrage her even further. It was a shock to hear such a brutal statement, not knowing such a tragedy had been weighing on the girl's mind.

I could hardly think of how to respond to such a revelation, knowing that nothing I could say would make her feel any better. Despite still being angry about leaving the woman behind I decided to let the matter rest for the moment, from the way Elyza was tightly gripping the steering wheel I doubted she was in the mood to be criticized further.

Glancing out the window I was relieved to see that we were not far from where I had been split up from Nick, quietly directing Elyza through the many abandoned houses until finally we arrived at our destination.

The car had barely pulled to a stop before I threw the door open and leapt out onto the street, clinging to the desperate hope that my family would have returned here in search of me. Not even bothering to check for the presence of walkers, I strode through each room on the ground floor, keeping my eyes peeled for any sign that my family had been here.

To my dismay the house seemed to be just as I had left it  a week ago, no notes or clues that had been left behind. After a fruitless search, I was about to ascend the stairs to check the upper level when Elyza gripped my arm and pulled me back from the bannister. Surprised at the motion I didn't fight as she fixed me with a powerful look, silently willing me to stay in place as she unsheathed one of her swords and went up ahead to sweep the area.

She jogged back down a short time later and gave me a nod to indicate that it was all clear, moving back to the front door to keep watch as I darted up the stairs. Even as I checked each room I was more than aware that no trace of my family was to be found but I continued regardless.

I hesitated outside the bathroom door, recalling that Nick had been searching up here when I had gone ahead to the store. The door was already partially open from Elyza's search for walkers and I stepped inside, pushing the door back fully as I cast my gaze over the dull surfaces.

My breath caught when I glimpsed the small plastic containers scattered over the floor, above which the cabinet was left in a mess, the contents having been rifled through carelessly.

Memories of that day drifted back to me, how I had been waiting downstairs for Nick, the thudding of items falling faintly heard from above my head. I dropped to one knee and picked up the abandoned bottle, twisting it in my grip to read the medical label stuck to the front. It was not anything that I recognized but the sheer number of them scattering the floor made it quite clear what had taken place. Had Nick really been searching for drugs that day?

My thoughts were interrupted when Elyza called up to me, a few moments passing before she called again, asking if everything was okay. I dropped the bottle to the floor and stood up, looking around one last time before leaving the small room and heading back downstairs.

Elyza looked at me curiously as I walked past her in silence and out into the fresh air, staring blindly into the distance as she came up to my side.

'Find anything?' she inquired, knowing that something was not quite right, she had a way of noticing things like that.

'Nothing important,' I said quietly, mentally pushing back thoughts of Nick's addiction to focus on the goal of getting back to my family again. My head snapped to the left, the direction of Ocean beach where our small boat had arrived last week. Without another word, I set off down the side walk, my chest tight with anticipation of what we would find there. It was close enough to walk, not that I particularly wanted to be cooped up in the old car again so soon.

'Alicia! Hold on,' Elyza called out after me, jogging to catch up and pulled to a stop directly in my path, placing both hands on my shoulders to bring my furious pace to a halt.

'The beach is this way, that's where they'll be,' I explained, remaining still even when her hands dropped to her sides.

'I'm sure they are but you can't just keep charging around the place without a care, walkers are still out there and we'll run straight into them at this rate,' she said gently, despite our disagreement in the car it seemed that it had all been put aside at the prospect of reuniting with my family.

She spoke the truth regarding the danger that we faced on these streets, at this moment I only cared about reaching the shore and had lost all sense of precaution when it came to our protection. I nodded in agreement and gestured for Elyza to take the lead, setting off at a less hasty pace as we remained as close to the buildings as possible.

I tapped her on the shoulder when the beach came into view, every ounce of my being wanting nothing more than to run across the open space to locate Strand's boat on the water.

We remained by the building for a few minutes as Elyza surveyed the area, searching for any signs of danger as I shifted impatiently behind her. A fair-sized parking area lay between us and the beach, not that any movement could be seen amongst the collection of vehicles.

Finally satisfied that the way ahead was clear, Elyza gestured that we could advance and took position at my back as we strode through the cars, covering my back against anything that might sneak up on us. My thoughts were far from the possible threat of walkers as I stepped onto the sandy beach, my trainers sinking slightly to accommodate the new surface.

I set into a jog across the beach, recognizing the area where our boat had pulled up what felt like an age ago, disappointment weighing heavy on me to find nothing along the stretch of shoreline. I desperately cast my gaze out to sea, moving further forwards until the gentle waves were lapping around my ankles. The icy cold that came with the water was nothing compared to the searing pain in my chest as I scanned the empty horizon.

The Abigail was nowhere to be seen, my family gone with it. I could barely breath as it truly hit me, this journey, the search it had all been for nothing. They were gone. My mother, my brother, the life I knew.

A sob threatened to escape my lips and instead I whirled in a fury, continuing to pace along the shore line frantically calling for my brother, surely they wouldn't have left me here? They would emerge from somewhere, smiles lighting their faces as we reveled in being reunited once more. Except nothing happened. Nick did not come running down the beach to envelop me in a tight hug, my mom's relief to have found her daughter nonexistent.

'Mom! Nick!' I cried, my vision beginning to blur as I blinked away a tear, my voice failing as despair washed through me. Footsteps sounded at my back and I spun to see Elyza approaching with concern.

'Alicia...'

I turned away from her and headed straight back into the ocean as if the Abigail would just appear in the distance and everything would be okay. I whispered their names under my breath even as a tight grip pulled me back from the water and my fantasies.

Elyza grunted when I pushed her back, my energy ebbing away as I could no longer pretend. It was not okay, no-one was coming for me. I slipped on the sand bank and splashed backwards into the shallow water, scrambling out onto the dry sand with heaving breaths.

'Damn Alicia, I'm trying to help you,' Elyza urged, her gaze flashing past where I sat on the sand, knees drawn up to my chest in defeat as I dealt with the wave of emotions currently sweeping over me.

I was aware of nothing but the misery that overwhelmed me, all-encompassing there was no part of me that wanted to move away from this spot, to even consider what might happen from here on.

'Alicia, I need you to listen to me very carefully,' Elyza began in a hushed tone, lowering herself down onto one knee at my side as her gaze remained fixed on something in the distance that I wasn't aware of. 'It seems that we've attracted some unwanted attention in the form of the undead, we need to move before they see us.'

Her words barely registered, my mind occupied with the revelation that my family had left me here, it was very possible that I would never see them again. It was the urgency in her voice that attuned me to the danger that we would soon be in and I tipped my head slightly in her direction.

'Please Alicia, we can't stay here,' she insisted, pulling gently on my arm and to her relief I complied with her efforts and let her pull me to my feet. With a light hand on my back she ushered me along the shoreline, keeping our heads low as we approached the lifeguard tower.

It was a simple wooden structure, a raised ramp allowing access to a relatively small cabin, perfect to keep ourselves hidden from any passing walkers. Elyza pushed me up the ramp ahead of her as she glanced hurriedly over her shoulder. I twisted the handle desperately but it was locked, somehow it had remained secure even in the apocalypse.

Elyza slipped past me to attend with the door as I stepped back and cast my gaze out to where she had been looking. To my horror, I saw the horde of walkers that were stumbling over the uneven beach in our direction, their figures barely visible from the far end of the beach. Now I understood the blonde's urgency.

A sharp crack sounded at my back and, startled, I turned to see that Elyza's solution of kicking the door in had granted us access to the cabin. At my hesitation, she leant over and ushered me inside, following close behind and pushing a large wooden chest in front of the broken entrance to keep the door firmly shut.

The windows had long been boarded up and as Elyza looked over the contents of the room I sank onto the small chair in the corner of the cabin, barely over a meter in diameter it was hardly spacious accommodation. After finishing her sweep of the room Elyza settled on the wooden floor with her back resting against the far wall, giving me the space that I needed.

We remained in silence, partly due to the revelation that our journey had been pointless, but mostly due to mass of walkers that were currently closing in on our position. At that moment I could hardly care less, so wrapped up in my thoughts to even care that I was on the brink of tears in front of the girl that I hardly knew.

I squeezed my eyes shut and tried to compose myself but my sorrow could not be masked. Wiping my eyes with the sleeve of my jacket I avoided Elyza's worried gaze and twisted in the seat to rest my head against the wall, my position allowing me to look out of the tiny crack in the panels to observe the beach below.

With my back to the girl I did not bother to mask my emotions, not caring that she was fully aware of my tears. I felt drained both physically and emotionally, not bringing myself to acknowledge the blonde who could do nothing to ease my pain.

As time stretched on I could barely comprehend the situation we were in, unable to admit the truth to myself even when it was blindingly obvious. With my eyes shut to block out the reality it was hardly surprising when I slipped into an uneasy sleep, not what I had intended but clearly needed.

I jerked awake a while later, lifting my head in confusion as I winced at the pain in my neck. It had not been the most comfortable position to sleep in. The light streaming into the cabin was nowhere near as intense as I remembered, having arrived at the beach around midday. I shifted on the seat to find the cabin empty, the wooden chest having been pulled back from the door which was now ajar and Elyza was nowhere to be seen.

Panic built within me at the realization that if I didn't have her then I truly was alone, my nightmare about the disappearance of my family being more real than I had hoped. Jumping up from the chair I all but forgot about the danger we had faced from the walkers, bursting out into the fading light of the afternoon with one name on my lips.

Elyza glanced up, startled at the sudden movement from where she was striding back to the lifeguard hut, concern creasing her brow when she saw my expression.

'Alicia, what's wrong?' she inquired, gripping the rail as she stepped up onto the ramp. I inhaled sharply in an attempt to cover my panic at her absence, realizing that I had jumped to conclusions far too soon.

'Nothing...I'm fine.'

It was probably the worst lie I had ever attempted and it was not successful in the slightest, but thankfully Elyza didn't press me for more. I looked out across the beach and saw that there were no walkers in sight, it seemed that I had slept right through the whole thing.

'The walkers lost interest after a while, they could be back at any time though,' she warned, making it clear that our position was far from safe. 'I went to make sure that there were none nearby whilst you slept, I wasn't sure what you intended to do from here.'

I glanced down at my sand covered trainers, scuffing a heel against the ramp as I considered my options. At this moment I couldn't accept that my family were gone, the thought was just too painful and I wasn't ready to give up on them just yet.

'I'm waiting here for my family,' I finally decided, clinging to the hope that they would return here in search of me. Elyza nodded in understanding and I wondered what she would do now. 

'Don't feel obliged to stay, you brought me here like I asked so you don't have to stick around.'

As hard as it was to say the words, it was unfair of me to assume that she would remain here with me after she had gone through all the trouble just to get me here. 

'No chance, you don't get rid of me that easily,' she retorted, and I couldn't help but feel relieved that she was staying, I didn't want to be alone right now. 'It won't be long until night falls, you should get inside in case any walkers return.'

I frowned at her instructions. 'Where are you going?'

'If we're staying then we'll need supplies, I'll return to the car and grab a bag, it should last us long enough,' she explained, my worry returning as I thought of the journey back to the vehicle in the dim light.

'Are you sure it's safe?' I asked, not wanting to think what I would do if anything happened to her.

'You know I can take care of myself,' she said firmly and I couldn't argue, backing up into the cabin to take my previous position on the chair. Elyza grabbed a dagger from the small table in the corner and held it out for me. 'Here, you shouldn't need to use it but just in case. Push the chest in front of door when I go and don't open it for anyone until I return.'

I nodded in understanding, grasping the hilt of the dagger and wished Elyza luck before she slipped out and jogged across the sand towards the car park. Once she had disappeared from sight, I pushed the chest up against the door as instructed, returning to sit on the chair, dagger clasped firmly in hand.

My thoughts drifted to memories of my family as I waited in silence, the faint splashing of waves the only sound that could be heard faintly from outside. Of all the ways today was meant to have gone this was the one I had not expected, not having wanted to admit it was possible. They were meant to be here, waiting for me to return like Nick had said they would.

There was no point dwelling on it now, they would come for me. They were most likely on their way even as I looked out onto the beach through the crack in the wall.

The light outside grew even more faint as evening fell and my concern increased when Elyza was still not back. She should have returned by now. I wondered what would happen when my family did show up, would they have any objection to Elyza joining our group? Would she?

I had never considered what her plans were once she had returned me safely to my family, was she hoping for an invitation? It was more likely that she would go her own way, she was incredibly independent, she had to be in the apocalypse.

I felt a twinge of sorrow for the girl, dismayed that she had experienced such a brutal event in the manner of her mother's death. I had not yet brought it up after her outburst in the car, aware of how painful it would be for her to recall. When she was ready and if she wanted to then she would open up to me, but on her own terms. 

As even more time passed by I was unable to sit still for a moment longer, rising from the chair as I attempted to calculate how long it had now been. Thankfully in the Summer months the darkness set in late into the evening so Elyza still had some time before the light dwindled away entirely.

Light footsteps sounded from the ramp outside and I froze in place, listening intently for the characteristic groan of a walker as I gripped the dagger even tighter. When no more sound was heard from outside I silently stepped over to the door, placing one knee on the chest so that I could carefully lean forwards and press my ear against the wooden door.

The sound of my own breaths was the only thing that I could make out even with my senses on high alert, though there was no way I had imagined those footsteps. It was possible that a walker had dragged itself up onto the wooden platform or it could be another survivor investigating the small building. Either way I hoped that I was wrong.

A harsh knock sounded on the door and I leapt back in surprise, pressing my lips tightly together to suppress a scream. Relief coursed through me when I heard Elyza's quiet voice announce her presence from outside and hurriedly went about sliding the chest to one side to allow her access.

I pulled the door open and stepped back so that she could enter, pushing the chest back in place once she was inside. She dropped the bag that had been slung over one shoulder to the floor with a grimace, stretching out her arm to alleviate the tension in the muscle.

'Well, that bag is currently at full capacity so we should be good for a while,' she told me, rolling her shoulders as she spoke. I glanced down at the bag that looked fit to burst, wondering how she had carted such a load all the way back here.

'That's good, thank you,' I said sincerely, knowing that she had no obligation to stay and help me, I wasn't yet entirely sure why she had decided to stay but I was just glad that she had.

'It's only cereal bars for food I'm afraid but it's better than nothing,' she said, lowering herself down to sit on the floor, looking tired after her expedition. I realized that she had hardly slept in the recent days, it was no wonder she looked so drained. 'I'd better get some rest in before tomorrow, take what you need from the bag.'

I nodded and quietly sifted through the contents as she rested her head back against the wall, shutting her eyes to recover some strength for whatever was to come tomorrow. It wasn't long before her breathing deepened and she fell into a much-needed sleep, though the way she held her gun loosely in one hand reassured me that it would not take much to rouse her from the slumber.

Pulling a bottle of water from the rucksack, I settled down onto the small chair and cast my gaze out through the crack and over the beach. Today had been difficult to handle but I knew that my mom would not leave me here, whether it was tomorrow or the day after I was certain that the Abigail would return for me.   
  


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	6. The Right Decision

  
The next few days passed with little change. Every morning I would emerge from our temporary accommodation in the wooden cabin and station myself at the end of the stony pier that formed a finger like extension a short distance into the ocean, where I would wait expectantly for the Abigail to appear on the horizon. Despite the previous day's lack of success, I returned to the same position over the following days without exception. Refusing to allow any doubt to invade my mind, I was well aware of Elyza's opinion as she scoured the beach perimeter routinely to drive back any walkers. She never tried to sway me from the task but it I could tell that she thought it was pointless.

Only four days after our arrival at the beach did she finally voice her concerns, waiting until I had returned back to the cabin for the evening to confront me.

'Anything?'

I shook my head in response, sinking down onto the wooden chair with a sigh. She knew full well from my expression that there had been no sighting. Silence filled the room and I could imagine the gears turning in Elyza's head as she carefully formed her next words.

'How much longer are you willing to wait for them?' she inquired gently, a tone I rarely heard from the outspoken girl.

'Why? Have you got other places be?' I muttered, instantly feeling guilty for speaking to her in such a way when all she had done was help me.

'Supplies won't last forever Alicia, this can't go on much longer.'

I pretended not to hear the truth in her words, fixing my eyes forwards on the dark wooden panels in front of me. It was far easier to believe that they would return soon than face any other possibility.

'Have you considered that your family might not be returning here?' she said hesitantly, ankles crossed in front of her as she rested back against the far wall, not risking a glance over to see what my expression had just morphed into.

'Don't say that.'

Pushing herself up from the floor she stretched her stiff muscles before turning to face me, her patience wearing thin at my insistence that we would soon be seeing my family again.

'More walkers are converging on this beach every day, we can't wait here forever on some false hope. You have to start thinking like a survivor.'

I snapped my eyes up to hers, for once they were not concealed by aviators and I was not about to let her rip away any hope I had of being reunited with my family.

'There is no way my family would leave me here! They will come back for me and I'm not about to go traipsing aimlessly across the country with some stranger who gets some weird kick out of taking down walkers. Don't tell me what I have to do!'

The words spilt from my lips in an angry torrent, rising slowly from my chair as I stood face to face with the blonde. My hands were clenched in anger and I saw a similar emotion lighting the icy depths of Elyza's blue eyes but rather than retaliate she stepped away from me, the tension still leaping between us as she stooped to pick up her blades from the floor.

'Where are you going?' I asked as she shrugged on her leather jacket, my voice still dark with annoyance as she kept her back to me, nothing to betray her emotions.

'Checking for walkers, you're lucky this stranger actually gives a damn about the two of us seeing it through until morning,' she replied, her voice strained as she fought to hold back all the comments that could be flung in response.

Weapons strapped firmly across her back, she shoved a handgun into its holder and strode out of the cabin without another word, leaving me staring at the empty space in which she had just been. The anger seeped away the moment I was alone, leaving me feeling dismayed at how I had just behaved. I had no right to speak to her in such a way and I wanted nothing more than to take my words back. Without her help, I would never have made it back here and this was how I repaid her kindness.

Lowering myself down onto the chair I squeezed my eyes shut, guilt trickling trough me as I recalled the emotions burning in her gaze, not just anger as I had first noticed but a spark of hurt that had lingered even as she had gone out into the night.

\-----

Elyza's POV

My boots thudded against the wooden ramp before my steps were muffled by the large expanse of sand. The brunette's words swirled through my head in a constant loop as I set out at a furious pace along the shore line, the ocean considerably more rough tonight than it had been previously, the spray from the waves settling as a fine layer over my clothes.

Did she really think so little of me that in her mind I was still just some stranger she hardly knew? I had risked so much to return her to her family, at the risk of losing the only human contact I had experienced in a long time. My words about the pointless waiting had not been cruel, merely intended to bring the girl back to reality and be honest with herself.

I changed direction back up to the parking lot where I had found some walkers roaming earlier, it seemed to be a popular area for them to approach the beach. Maybe taking some irritation out on the undead would stop me from saying anything that I would regret to Alicia, I could understand her outburst due to her current situation but it had still hurt none the less.

It was hard to admit that her words had hurt me, it would usually take something far more insulting to bring about such a reaction but this was different. Alicia still held the death of the women against me, the one who been unable to escape the desperate pursuit of the walkers. It had been our only option to leave but it seemed that Alicia had her own ideas about how things should be done, which usually involved more danger. That was the source of some of her anger, she hadn't been her usual self ever since the event earlier that week and now the potential loss of her family on top of it had hit her hard.

My foot slipped as the sand shifted underneath me and I shot out a hand to steady myself, jogging the rest of the way up the slight rise onto the more stable tarmac of the parking lot. I darted in between the motionless vehicles, senses on high alert for anything out of the ordinary as I pushed all other thoughts aside to focus on the task at hand.

A glimmer of movement caught my attention through a faded window of a nearby pickup truck and I sank down behind the closest car, remaining perfectly still as I waited to see if anything emerged. It was now early evening and normally I would not venture out at such a time, but I had needed to distance myself from Alicia before things got out of hand.

It was only now that I regretted my decision, unable to see a clear figure without any light to highlight their form. Even without the added bonus of increased visibility I could now hear the shuffling steps growing closer and thankfully it seemed to be moving through the cars further left of my position.

Taking a chance, I slowly stepped out from behind the car and saw the walker lurching unsteadily towards the beach I had just came from. It wasn't aware of my presence which gave me the advantage and without wasting any more time I moved silently up behind the creature, whipping back my sword to drive straight down into its skull with a sickening crunch. It dropped to the ground with a sputtering groan and I pulled my blade free, careful to avoid any back splash.

The number of walkers that I had taken out in the recent days had become an increasing worry, it seemed that more were flocking to this area all the time and it only reminded me of how little time we had before needing to move on. The last thing we wanted was to be overrun by a horde of the bastards.

I wrenched open the nearest car door, gently wiping my blade across the head rest of the driver's seat to clean off the worst of the red liquid. Sheathing the weapon once more I was about to turn away when I saw what vehicle I had stumbled across, barely having noticed it when the walker had appeared. Police cars where a gold mine for survivors, they could contain anything from weapons and ammo to radio's or supplies. I was getting tired of eating cereal bars every day and rested one knee on the seat as I cast my gaze around the interior in search of any goodies.

There didn't seem to be anything lying in plain view so I lent forwards and managed to pull the glove box open with some effort, revealing nothing but a faded manual and some discarded wrappers from long before the apocalypse hit. I screwed my face up in disappointment and threw them onto the backseat, ready to retreat back to the cabin when a glitter of foil caught my eye and under one of the half-destroyed wrappers I found a packet of chewing gum, finding only one piece missing after a quick inspection. I backed out of the car and slipped it into my back pocket for later use, at lease I wouldn't be returning empty handed.

Deciding that it was about time I headed back to the lifeguard hut I turned away from the car, my eyes widening in surprise to see a walker shambling towards me with outstretched arms, jaw hanging slack at an unnatural angle that would make a more sensitive person shudder. The elderly lady dragged herself forward, her steps muffled by the light grey slippers that enclosed her feet, intent on grasping her next victim.

I ducked away from her reach just in time, cursing my loss of focus as I had searched the car, no longer paying attention to my surroundings as I should have been. My situation was made worse when I saw that she was not the only walker descending upon my position, at least three others almost within striking distance already. I pulled my blades free with a grimace, not wanting to fire off any shots that would attract even more of the undead.

Not forgetting about the elderly lady at my back, I twisted my torso to swipe a blade towards her head, the metal tearing a deep path across her already deformed face before the next blade followed not a moment later and struck its target straight through her skull. Ripping the sword free as she toppled over, I struck out with my right hand and felled the closest walker, sending a powerful kick at its chest to send it falling back against the other two.

They stumbled as the corpse fell into their path, granting me a brief moment to catch my breath before they manoeuvred around the obstacle and resumed their jerking movements towards me. I slammed the hilt of my sword against the temple of the fastest creature, barely avoiding the grasping hand that was flung forwards at my face, pulling back just in time as it crumpled to the ground. The final walker didn't last long when it was stupid enough to trip over the body, falling helpfully to its knees before me with a guttural screech, the sound dying away when I finished it off with a well-aimed strike of my blade.

It soon became apparent that I had not hit one of the previous walkers with enough force as it rose unsteadily to its feet, swaying for a moment as it recovered from the hefty blow to the temple before careening towards me in the closest thing to a charge that the walker could achieve. I brought up my sword to block its advance, the sheer weight of the creature overcoming my resistance to push me back into the closest car, the air ripped from my lungs as my back thudded into the metal body of the vehicle. My right arm caught on the broken glass from a smashed back window, feeling a raised fragment of glass pierce the leather material of my sleeve.

Ignoring the sensation in my lower arm entirely, I grimaced at the frenzied hunger in the walker's eyes, an animalistic groan ripping from its lips as it came so close to claiming a fresh meal.

'You messed with the wrong blonde today sucker,' I growled right back at the walker, using a burst of energy to heave the flat of my blade against its chest to send it stumbling back a few steps, not as far as I would have liked but more than enough to give me the room needed to drive my sword through its head with enough force to ensure that it stayed dead this time. It soon joined the others on the ground, not about to get up again any time soon.

The bodies of the dead lay scattered before me, the element of surprise not having earnt them an easy meal. I was in the process of catching my breath when movement sounded from behind me. It startled me into action, the steps far faster than any walker I had heard before but I refused to be caught unaware yet again. I twirled with practised grace, raising my sword to the throat of the infected walker that had somehow managed to circle around me during the fight. I froze in place to find a startled pair of green eyes staring back at me, not the milky white that the walkers possessed but full of life and, right at that moment, fear.

A few seconds passed as I processed this information, still caught up in the adrenaline rush from the battle and seeing enemies around every corner. Alicia's eyes darted down to the dripping blade that was hovering barely an inch away from her throat, holding completely still in the knowledge that she had almost joined the collection of bodies on the floor. I dropped my arm hurriedly at the realization, relief passing across the girl's features to no longer have the weapon pointed at her in such a manner.

'I thought for a minute there you were going to run me through,' she joked lightly, the slight tremor in her voice betraying the confident tone.

'I very nearly did,' I admitted, still buzzing from adrenaline after the unexpected fight. 'What are you doing out here?'

'You were gone for a while, I came to check that you were okay,' she explained, even though I had told her specifically not to leave the cabin alone. It could've easily been her that had stumbled across the walkers and I daren't think how that would've ended.

'I can look after myself perfectly well, it would take more than that to get the better if me,' I assured her, gesturing to the gruesome scene behind me, putting away the sword now that the immediate danger had passed.

'You're injured,' Alicia noted, eyeing the ripped material of my sleeve that had been pronounced by the movement. I glanced down at it briefly, not bothered by the minor injury.

'I've had worse. We should get back to the cabin, we don't want any more encounters tonight,' I said dismissively, almost surprised to see the concern that the girl held after the way she had spoken to me earlier. I could never quite understand where I stood with her, recent events making it increasingly difficult to work out.

I took the lead, retracing my steps along the stretch of beach to arrive safely at the cabin, pushing the chest firmly against the door once we were inside. After unstrapping my collection of weapons and laying them on the small table in the corner, I sat in the chair that Alicia would usually claim. She hovered uncertainly by the door as I rolled up my sleeve to inspect the jagged gash inflicted by the glass that marked a path along my forearm just below the elbow.

The wound did not bother me, I had seen far worse and what little medical supplies I had recovered from the car would be sufficient enough to clean it up. Alicia on the other hand was looking at it with wide eyes, jumping into action to retrieve the supplies before I could even move. She rifled through the rucksack to pull free the bandages and a bottle of water, crouching at my side in silence intending to treat the wound herself.

'Alicia, I know enough about medicine to do this myself,' I told her, breaking the silence that had fallen between us ever since the walk back across the beach. Alicia didn't meet my gaze as she uncapped the bottle and tipped some of the water onto a cloth and gently went about cleaning my injury.

'I know,' she said softly, not elaborating further as she pulled the wet cloth gently across my skin, focusing on the task rather than dwell on the unsaid words between us. I clenched my teeth to smother a hiss of pain when the cloth came into contact with the torn flesh, willing a conversation to take place which would distract me from the burning sensation.

'I'm sorry I said those things earlier, I didn't mean any of it,' Alicia said, not exactly the uplifting conversation I had been hoping for but conversation all the same.

'You have a lot to deal with right now, I understand.'

The repetitive wiping of the cloth paused for a moment before continuing a second later, my words having surprised the girl. To some extent she was still in denial about the chances of her family returning, before long we would have to move on and she had to realise that soon.

Once done cleaning the wound Alicia began to bandage it, her technique was not half bad so I didn't stop her. I left my jacket off once she was finished, it would only make it hurt more during the night, and we both took up respective positions in the small cabin, Alicia propped up against the wall whilst I tried to get comfy on the wooden chair.

After a long period of silence, I had assumed the brunette was asleep until I tilted my head and saw that I wasn't the only one wide awake. Her eyes flicked up to me at the movement.

'Stop looking at me like that,' I told her, a hint of confusion creeping into Alicia's expression.

'Like what?'

'With those big, guilt-ridden eyes. You're going to start making me feel bad. This is nothing, you should see the other guy.'

The brunette rolled her eyes and looked away, not appearing fully convinced by my humour.

'Seriously, stop beating yourself up over it. You're forgiven, I'm forgiven, we're all good. Okay?'

Alicia considered my words for a moment, meeting my gaze once more with a hint of a smile.

'Okay.'

'Great, now get some sleep.'

\----

**Alicia POV**

Morning light found me perched in my usual position on the end of the peer, legs dangling over the perilous drop as I rested my weight back on my hands and gazed out over the open water. It was not with expectance that I waited, but merely as a way to gather my thoughts. The only sound to reach my ears was the gentle lapping of waves on the shore, it was easy to forget about the nightmare that we were now living.

After my outburst yesterday I'd realised just how blinded I had been. Elyza had not been wrong about the chances of my family returning. When Nick and I had been split up that fateful day there had been a horde of walkers on our trail. I had been lucky to lose those that had focused on me but who was to say that Nick had been so fortunate? If the walkers had followed him down to shore than it may not have been safe for them to return to the beach.

There were endless possibilities and I may never know what had happened that day. I felt a pang of longing to see my family again, it was an entirely different situation that I now found myself in without them. No longer at sea, isolated from the danger, but on land with a new companion.

I tilted my head back to enjoy what warmth the weak sunlight provided and continued to think on what our options were. It was with reluctance that I dismissed the idea of waiting here any longer. We would run low on supplies shortly and from what Elyza had said, more walkers were appearing every day.

Soft footfalls sounded from behind me, loose pebbles skidding over the concrete before Elyza lowered herself down into a cross legged position on my left. I tilted my head and flashed her a quick smile, her lips curving in response before I returned my gaze back to the ocean.

'More trouble?' I inquired, noting the fresh blood stain that decorated the right shoulder of her jacket. Despite the injury she had received the previous day, it wasn't enough to deter her from going out on patrol of the beach. I had of course offered to go in her place, but to that she had only laughed and holstered her gun before striding out of the cabin without hesitation.

'A few more of them exploring the area,' she began, glancing down at the stain when I gestured to it silently. A curse fell from her lips as she tried to scrub it out the best she could, muttering under her breath about the inconvenience. It seemed we would need to go shopping sooner rather than later.

'I've been thinking and I have an idea,' I said a few moments later, her rapid cleaning coming to a swift halt as she glanced up at me suspiciously through narrowed eyes.

'If you want us to build an SOS sign I am throwing myself off the pier.'

I ignored the remark, not wanting to distract myself from what had now become clear to me.

'It's time we moved on, we should leave today.'

Elyza dropped the humour instantly, frowning slightly as she searched for the right words to say.

'Are you certain?'

I nodded my head, our time here had come to an end. She had made me see sense and I was sticking to my decision. 

'We should leave now,' I insisted, rising to my feet and turning my back on the ocean tides as Elyza jumped up at my side. She didn't want to force the decision on me but her words yesterday had been true. 

'Not that I think it's a bad idea, but is this really what you want?' she inquired one last time, jogging a few steps to catch up with my strides.

'It is the right decision,' I told her, the certainty in my voice assuring her that this wasn't a temporary belief. We were leaving for good.

'Alrighty then,' she said cheerily, not wanting me to dwell overly on thoughts of my family. 'Where to now? We can return to the house for some supplies but after that we've got all of America to explore.'

There were countless destinations to choose from and I considered each one until I remembered what Elyza had said after saving me from the walkers. I chewed thoughtfully on my lip as we ascended the ramp to the life guard hut, pitching my suggestion to Elyza when we entered.

'New Mexico.'

Elyza nodded absentmindedly as she grabbed her rucksack and took an inventory of her weapons. I handed her back the knife she had given to me and waited for her to understand.

'As good as any other state, why New Mexico?' she asked, pulling up the zipper after shoving a hand gun inside, throwing the bag over her right shoulder.

'Santa Fe.'

She arched an eyebrow at me in surprise, that was where she had been headed to rendezvous with her friends before she had stumbled across me. After bringing me all this way to find my family it was only fair to return the favour. Maybe one of us would have some luck with the reunion.

'That sounds like a very good idea,' she said with a grin, latching onto my meaning. 'But first things first, we need to take a dip in there.'

I frowned as she gestured in the general direction of the ocean, she couldn't be serious?

Apparently she was and within the hour we had both braved the freezing waters for an abrupt wash, leaving us both huddling in our clothes for warmth even if Elyza wouldn't admit that she was affected. After a quick search she had located some towels earlier from a nearby house and I reluctantly found that they improved my body temperature considerable.

Finally clean and dry, we gathered up the few supplies that remained in the hut from our stay before leaving the beach behind us. The car was not a far distance away, though we had to shelter for a few moments behind a van whilst we waited for a walker to stumble by.

Elyza chucked the rucksack into the back seat before we both climbed into the car. She didn't start the engine straight away and I glanced over to see what the holdup was. Leaning a fraction to the left she pulled free a tinfoil package from her back pocket which I soon recognised as chewing gum.

'I found it in a police car yesterday, nothing else of any use but it's better than nothing.'

She reached out and handed me the packet before she twisted the keys in the ignition and the old car rumbled to life. I gave Elyza one of the pieces and pocketed the remainder when she refused to take them back, switching her concentration to the road as we pulled away from the buildings. The mint flavour was a blessed relief from the dull taste of cereal bars that we had recently been eating and I would make the pack last as long as possible.

'Can we make a stop on the way?'

Elyza asked what my reasoning was, everything we needed was at the house she had taken me to a few days earlier in Arizona.

'I still owe you a new pair of boots,' I recalled, drawing a smile from Elyza who was surprised that I had even remembered the passing comment. She nodded her head in approval and adjusted our speed, easing her foot off the gas before I had chance to complain.

After collecting the rest of our supplies from the house we would be well on our way to New Mexico, only a few days away from our current position. It would be nice for Elyza to find her friends, and not only did I owe her a new pair of boots but indeed my life after all she had done for me. It looked like we were stuck with each other, though I could think of far worse company.

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	7. Getting To Know you

The journey back to Atlanta was far less tense than it had been recently. Any differences we may have had were all in the past, if we wanted to survive then we couldn't constantly be at odds with each other. It wasn't to say that we wouldn't have opposing opinions in the future but we had to let go of the past.

It had been difficult for me to admit that leaving the women behind had been the right decision, but looking back I could see that Elyza was right. She had most likely been bitten and we would have all been caught short by the group of walkers even if we had by some miracle managed to get her over the fence. It had been the main source of conflict between us ever since the incident but now everything had become clear to me, and even though I still hated having to leave anyone behind, at least now I had accepted that we had no other choice.

Elyza had seemingly forgiven my harsh words to her the previous day but I was not about to forget so easily. It had been unnecessary and despite the circumstances I had no right to behave in such a way. We stopped off at a store not an hour into our trip and I presented Elyza with a pair of black ankle boots, adorned with a buckle clasp over the silver zip, no use having laces that would only trip her up.

I had been fortunate to find them, only able to locate one shoe before a hurried search had revealed the other half hidden beneath the mess of clothes strewn over the floor. Elyza immediately pulled off her own blood stained boots and grinned when the new pair fit with the same comfort. They were practical with a thicker sole and Elyza grinned in thanks at the gesture. It had admittedly been my fault that the others had gotten into such a state so it was the least I could do.

We were back on the road soon after, both our spirits lifted to be away from the beach and the futile hope that I had been clinging to. I had not forgotten about my quest to find my family. The hours of driving had given me time to think of a plan. I knew for certain that the Abigail had a radio and if I could get my hands on one myself then I could get in contact with them.

Over half of the distance back to the house in Arizona was covered in that one day. We had another uncomfortable sleep in the car that night before setting off again the next morning, only another three hours to go until we arrived at our destination.

I stretched out my arms in front of me and yawned, my muscles slightly cramped from being in the car for so long. It would be a relief to sleep in a bed once more, it had been a long time since I had been treated with the comfort of pillows and a mattress.

'Will you give it a rest Alicia,' Elyza muttered, raising a hand to cover the yawn that was forming on her own lips in response. 'We would be there by now if we had taken the motorbike.'

The thought of being balanced precariously on the back of the metal bike riding at over 100 mph made me suddenly thankful for the rusting car that had gotten us this far. Elyza felt differently, she loved nothing more than feeling the air whip by as she tore down an open stretch of road.

'This old car is good enough, though it's not really in keeping with your love of top speeds,' I commented, half expecting her to have revealed an excessively fast sports car when the motorbike had been firmly refused.

Elyza smiled fondly at the dashboard as she recalled a distant memory. 'This beauty got me out of a lot of scrapes, it would hardly be fair to ditch her after all we've been through together.'

I rolled my eyes, not understanding her attachment to the vehicle and wondered if she could ever choose between the car or her beloved motorbike.

We had allowed ourselves a lie in that morning and it was now gone midday, crossing into Arizona only a few hours later. The journey passed quickly, general conversation between the two of us now coming easily and within half an hour we were pulling into Mescal Loop and I recognised the house that Elyza used as a temporary base.

Elyza was whistling cheerily to herself as she cut the ignition, both of us pleased to be back and with no sighting of any walkers on the stretch of road. I hopped out of the car and took a deep breath of the fresh air as I relished the freedom of being out of the confined passenger seat.

I glanced around the street, hardly having had time to take in my surroundings before when we had quickly set off for San Diego and away from the walkers that had been attracted by the roar of the motor bike.

It was a neatly organised area, this house being one of the few two-storey buildings nestled amongst the bungalows each with its own gravelled drive. The air was quiet and it was almost peaceful until you remembered to keep an eye out for any nearby walkers.

Having taken in the sights I made my way up the small drive to the front door as Elyza grabbed the bags from the backseat of the car, not wanting to take her eye off her precious weapons for a moment.

My steps slowed when I neared the door to find it ajar. The frame had been torn from where someone had seemingly felt it necessary to kick the door in with considerable force. I came to a complete stop and called back to Elyza who glanced up curiously, gently shutting the car door and approaching with the bags in hand.

'This doesn't look good,' I commented, clearly remembering Elyza locking the door behind us when we had departed.

'No, it doesn't,' she murmured in agreement, holding out the duffel bag of weapons for me to take before drawing the handgun and advancing into the house. I grasped the material handle tight and followed behind her, holding my breath with anticipation as she swept through each room in turn, ready to fire on anything that moved.

My mouth hung open as my gaze fell on the mess that was once the clean and pristine kitchen, the cupboards flung open in search of supplies with anything of no use having been strewn carelessly on the floor. Smashed glass crunched under Elyza's new boots as she let the weapon fall to her side, letting out a sigh of annoyance at the state of the house. It was not only the kitchen that had been ransacked but every single room.

With horror, I realised that whatever supplies had been stashed here were most likely in the hands of whoever had broken in. We had planned to use those supplies to get us to Santa Fe, it would take us more time now to find food and water for the journey. With my attention on the bare shelves I jolted in surprise when Elyza darted out of the back door without warning, an anguished string of curses filtering through not a few seconds later.

'They took the goddam bike!' she exclaimed, storming back into the kitchen with a scowl as she holstered the handgun. There was no one here to use it on, they were long gone by now.

'All of the supplies are gone,' I said quietly, knowing that our whole purpose of returning here had been to pick up the spare food and water.

'If only they had the guts to stick around and fight for it. That bike was a good model, better than any others they've laid their grubby hands on,' Elyza went on darkly, seemingly not bothered by anything other than her precious bike.

'Did you hear me!? The supplies, they're all gone.'

The blonde didn't react for a moment as she stared into the distance, still wrapped up in thoughts of the lost bike. Her eyes finally snapped to mine when I repeated myself, confused to see no urgency in the blue depths. Did she realise that we only had a handful of cereal bars and a single bottle of water between us?

'Forget about the supplies. There's a chance we could catch up with those cowards, do you think they got far?'

I stared in disbelief at her clear prioritising of the bike over anything else, hardly able to comprehend her idea of chasing across America after these people.

'We are not traipsing without direction across the country for your bike without even a slim chance of coming across it. We have next to no supplies left and the bike is what you're worried about!?'

Elyza scoffed in response and strode out of the kitchen without another word, leaving me to stare wordlessly after her before hurrying to catch up when I heard her steps fading. Stepping out of the now broken front door into the bright sunlight, I lifted a hand to shield my eyes and jogged across the road to the adjacent house.

I followed the blonde curiously as we rounded the side of the building to the back of the next house and continued on until finally she came to a stop in front of the garage at its side. My heart jumped for a moment when I rounded the corner and saw the bloated dead body lying out over the gravel in the heat of the sun, having been there quite some time by the amount of decomposition that had already taken place.

Elyza stepped easily around the corpse to the garage entrance, waiting a second as I followed suit with considerably more reluctance. The smell was enough to make my stomach turn and I couldn't understand what we were doing here. My eye was drawn to what I had first assumed was pointless graffiti decorating the cream coloured door, only on closer inspection to see that the smeared black paint held a dark message.

DO NOT ENTER

DEAD INSIDE

DO NOT

The last word had been made unreadable by the spattered blood stain that I guessed had been from the corpse behind us. It didn't take a genius to figure out why someone would go to such effort but it made me even more uneasy when Elyza reached out a hand to grasp the handle.

'Wait, what are you doing?' I asked nervously, not reassured in the slightest when her lips curved into a mysterious smile and she made no move to withdraw her hand.

'You'll see.'

With one fluid motion, the garage door was sliding up and I tensed in preparation for whatever was about to come charging at us from the near darkness within, except nothing did. Not a single thing.

Elyza walked straight inside without hesitation, gesturing for me to follow. With the sunlight now streaming inside I could make out no corpses or walkers as the message had warned and glanced at her in confusion.

'Please tell me this is not where you keep a second bike?' I asked weakly, not doubting for a second that she would go to this much effort.

'I'm afraid not but that's a good idea,' she mused, pausing for a moment as if wondering why she had not thought of that. The next moment she was crossing the distance to the back of the garage to where a blanket had been thrown over a rectangular object. Nothing in here seemed to be particularly special, the usual array of tools and dusty shelves that had probably never been cleaned.

Elyza pulled the blanket back with a flourish, dropping it to the ground before lifting the lid off the wooden chest. I watched curiously as she heaved out a beige suitcase and laid it gently on the ground. Without a word, she pulled on the zipper which offered only a small amount of resistance, before finally pulling the case open.

My jaw almost fell in surprise when I caught sight of the sheer amount of food that had been shoved into the suitcase. A multitude of cans was stuffed in next to bottles of water, no wonder Elyza had not been worried about the missing supplies.

'I figured something like this might happen, so I took a few precautions,' she said with a proud smile, rising to her feet and dusting her hands off.

We were most certainly set up for the journey to Santa Fe, the worry easing from my mind now that we had these supplies to take. There was only so much of Elyza's gloating that I could take as she revealed a second suitcase hidden on the highest shelf in the corner, filled with just as many cans of food.

I rolled my eyes as she recalled my earlier doubt of her priorities, jabbing her playfully on the arm to shut her up.

'Let's just get the supplies in the car already,' I huffed, feigning annoyance as Elyza grinned at my back, the two of us then heaving the cases a short distance back to the parked vehicle. The weight of them was unforgiving, and I let out a breath as I shut the boot firmly. Everything was now ready for us to set off in the morning.

'So, what now?' I asked, hoping that there were no other hidden cases that needed to be relocated. Elyza pulled free a can from her pocket, presenting it with a smile.

'Care to join me for dinner?'

\-----

I had assumed we would be eating the food cold, which I would not have complained at due to the prospect of eating something other than cereal bars. I was pleasantly surprised when Elyza revealed that the inhabitants of the house had owned a wood burn stove, ideal for life without any power.

My appetite was growing steadily and it was with eagerness that I waited for the food to cook, soon being banned from the kitchen after constantly inquiring if the food was ready. I passed some time clearing up the worst of the mess in the front room before looking through a small collection of books that sat untouched by the staircase, though none of them looked particularly interesting.

On the lowest shelf I discovered an old game of monopoly resting on top of some classic literature, lifting it over to the table as I remembered the games played so long ago with my family. I removed the lid and waved away the dust that had come with it, finding the contents to still be in a fairly good condition. The game was forgotten when Elyza called from the kitchen and I left the box abandoned on the table whilst I went to claim my meal.

I ate on the couch with my legs drawn up under me, enjoying every mouthful of the hot food. I rested the plate on my lap one finished and let my head fall back against the cushions contentedly. I thanked Elyza again for the cooking, though she had laughed and told me that heating up some canned food could hardly be called cooking.

Before Elyza could move, I gathered up our plates and took them out into the kitchen, dropping them on the side before opening a can of mixed fruit. I grabbed two small plastic bowls for us and returned to find Elyza looking over the monopoly game.

'Did you play a lot?' she inquired as I dropped the bowls down next to the box.

'Yeah, with my family. It was something of a tradition.'

'Think you're good enough to beat me?' she inquired with a smirk. A beat of silence passed before I accepted the challenge.

'Without a doubt,' I said confidently, 'I'll be the car.'

\---

We managed to fit in three games before we called it a night. We both won a game before Elyza claimed victory with the third. I stood and stretched my cramped muscles, having been sat cross legged on the floor for so long.

'It has to be said, that was a flawless victory,' Elyza stated proudly, thumbing through the collection of paper notes that she had acquired in the last game.

'Well I stood no chance when I landed on all your hotels,' I agreed, having gone bankrupt at an alarming speed after that. Elyza stood and waved the fake money in my face as if she had just won a fortune.

'Face it Alicia, you were no match for me,' she bragged with a grin, laughing when I shouldered past her in mock anger to go about putting the board away. I stifled a yawn as I shoved the small pieces back into the correct compartment, pleasantly surprised when Elyza knelt beside me to begin the tedious task of returning the money in the right order.

'You should head up and get some sleep, it's late,' Elyza told me once we had finished packing away the game, the evening had gone by relatively quickly despite the games reputation to drag on. 'You can choose any room, just don't bother with the door on the first left. There are some unidentified stains on the walls that aren't particularly decorative.

I grimaced at the thought, glad that Elyza had warned be before I'd unknowingly wandered in. With another yawn escaping my lips I wished Elyza goodnight and ascended the stairs to find a room. Ignoring the first door on the left entirely, I went straight to the end of the small corridor where one of the four bedrooms was located and twisted the handle to let my self in.

After only one small step inside the room I noticed that it was already occupied. Elyza's rucksack was thrown onto the crumpled sheets beside the blades that were usually strapped across her back. I was about to turn and leave when a picture frame caught my eye. It was set upright on the cabinet by the bed and I couldn't fight the curiosity that drove me to step further into the room.

I picked it up carefully by the plastic frame, noting that it was not layered in dust like the other objects in the room. Elyza had a wild grin on her face, her blonde hair flying in the breeze as she laughed at something the photographer had said. There were no sun glasses to hide her expression and I smiled to see her so full of joy. My attention drifted to the woman at her side who had an arm draped over her shoulder, her features similar to that of Elyza as she also grinned with amusement.

Aware that this would most likely be considered an invasion of privacy, I carefully placed the frame back in its original position so that it might appear untouched and felt that it was time I left before being discovered. A sharp gasp escaped my lips when I turned to see Elyza leaning casually against the door frame, an eyebrow arched questioningly in my direction. How she moved so silently I would never know, and focused instead on trying to calm my racing heart.

'I know I told you to pick any room Alicia but this is a surprise, it is a double bed though in case you were wondering?' she told me lightly, nothing in her tone to suggest that she was angry about the intrusion. I couldn't be sure how long she had been stood there, but I felt guilty for inspecting the personal item without permission.

'Oh, um, your bed does look uh comfy,' I stuttered, mentally questioning why I had said such a thing. I was more concerned with the possibility of being caught invading her privacy than I was thinking about a rational response.

Elyza's eyebrow rose even higher and she stepped into the room with slow, deliberate steps.

'Oh yeah?'

I was almost certain by this point that she had seen me looking at the picture and decided it was best to leave now before I made this any worse.

'Well, I'll just go and check out the other rooms, sorry for the intrusion,' I said slowly, stepping around the advancing girl before hurrying out into the corridor. I shut the door softly behind me and let out a breath, wishing I had just left the room alone. Elyza had shared very little when it came to the topic of her parents, and clearly valued privacy of such matters.

I eventually chose the room closest to the stairs, my mind still turning over thoughts of the blonde and her past. Sinking down onto the bed made me realise how tired I was and settled down onto the pillows, my eyes fluttering closed after a quick scan of the room showed nothing unusual that demanded my attention.

The unfamiliar surroundings did not make for an easy sleep but, with the curtains drawn tightly shut, I eventually drifted off. The next day we would be driving the rest of the way to Santa Fe and if all went well I would be gaining more insight into Elyza's life before I had met her. She was a mystery to me at the moment with her incredible fighting skills and medical knowledge.

My light rest was brought to end when I sat up abruptly on the bed, my thoughts clouded slightly as I tried to remember what had awoken me. I sat silently for a few moments, rubbing my eyes gently before a sound from outside stilled the motion. It had been a thud from outside, whether from this house or down the street I could not tell.

I rose from the bed and stood without a noise to listen intently. It sounded again, followed by a crash from one of the houses opposite. A spark of panic burned in my chest, what if the people who had stolen our supplies were back?

Without even making a conscious decision I was moving at a fast pace out into the corridor and hurried to throw open Elyza's door and warn her of the danger. She lifted her head as I rushed inside, the quilt falling down to her waist when she pulled herself up into a sitting position.

'Alicia?' she murmured, voice still thick with sleep even as she reached for the handgun on the cabinet. I moved over to her window and peaked out through the curtains, careful not to move them in case the motion was seen.

'I heard something, like a thud and then a crash,' I explained, beginning to doubt that it had come from the other end of the street after all. What if it had been from outside this house?

Elyza sensed my worry and threw back the covers to join me at the window.

'It's just a walker. It was wandering on the street a few hours ago but it must have found its way into that house,' Elyza explained, 'it doesn't know that we're in here so it's no danger to us. It'll move on soon enough.'

Her words reassured me slightly but I knew I would not be able to sleep with the knowledge that it was so close to us. Elyza moved away from the window and back to the bed, sliding back under the covers as I hovered by the window.

'Come and sit down, I'm awake now,' she said lightly, not seemingly angry at how I had burst into the room uninvited.

With only the slightest hesitation I complied and clambered onto the foot of the bed, resting my back against the metal bars that extended out of the frame behind me. I was still unsure how Elyza felt about me seeing the picture earlier so I was not about to be the first to speak.

'How about some Q&A to pass the time? We ask a question alternatively and the other person has to answer.'

I nodded slowly, not seeing a problem with her suggestion. If anything it would be the perfect opportunity to learn more about my companion.

'Wonderful. I'll start,' she said, settling back against the pillow as she regarded me. 'What would Alicia's life be like had the apocalypse not got in the way?'

'I was accepted into UC Berkeley so that's where I would have been if not for all of this,' I replied, remembering how proud and excited I had once been at the prospect. It had been my chance to escape from the never ending drama of Nick's addiction and the possibility to start my own path in life. Now it just felt like an old dream.

My eyes flicked back to the window when a faint clatter was heard from a distant building, but I returned my attention to Elyza when I realised that it was my turn to ask a question. 

'How did you pick up your fighting and medicinal skills?' I inquired, pulling myself free from the memory. It wasn't something you just became good at because of the apocalypse.

'I got medical knowledge from my mom really, she was an amazing doctor and inspired me to follow in her footsteps. I had been reading up for my course before all this happened and obviously I learnt a lot from my mom,' she explained, a hint of sadness crossing her face to recall her parents. 'As for the fighting skills, I fell into a group of very diverse people when I first hit the streets and one of them kindly trained me to fight as he did.'

'What happened to him?'

'He died,' she said simply, 'and I believe that was two questions.'

Elyza thought carefully for a moment as to what she would ask, a smile curving her lips as she decided.

'How would you describe me in one word?'

I stared back at her in silence for a moment, surprised by the sharp turn in conversation. There were many words that I could use to describe the  girl.

Intense,  skilled, ferocious, _Incredible._

My train of thought ended rather abruptly as I wondered where the last one had come from. Suddenly feeling the pressure of Elyza's eyes resting patiently on me for a reply, I settled for something less complimenting. 

'Insufferable,' I offered, drawing out the word with mock irritation which resulted in a laugh from Elyza.

'I was thinking more along the lines of...legendary? There's always phenomenal but you can take your pick, lets see how you feel in a few weeks.'

I smiled back, trying to hide my surprise out how many compliments I could have, and had almost given her.

'My turn,' I stated, my eyes flicking over to the frame on the cabinet before returning to Elyza's unwavering gaze. She knew that I had seen it, no point dancing around it any longer.

'Is that your mom?' I asked softly, wary of what response I may get. She turned to look at the picture with a fond smile and nodded.

'That was taken a few months before she died. We were having a day out at the beach on her day off, it was my girlfriend who was taking the picture.'

I was instantly curious but did not want to pry further. Elyza had never spoken about being in a relationship and that left me wondering what had happened since that photo had been taken.

'The day my mom died, we were packing  and getting ready to leave,' Elyza continued without any prompting. 'We wanted to find somewhere safer away from the carnage that was happening. Before we could, a band of raiders broke in and threatened us, they wanted all of our supplies. They took everything and shot my mom point blank. That day the life I knew ended and I had to become stronger to survive.'

I listened silently as she recalled the memory, sickened by how such cruelty could happen as the world fell apart. Elyza's willingness to speak of it quickly escaped and she visibly pulled herself back to reality. Pity was the last thing she wanted so I said nothing, silence could sometimes be as good, if not better than any sympathetic words. 

Without warning Elyza shuffled forwards on the bed until she was sat in front of me, reaching out a hand to grip my left arm. I was only wearing a short sleeved shirt and glancing down I realised what the object of her focus was.

'Why this tattoo?' she asked me, tilting her head to one side as she took in the swirls of dark ink just above my wrist.

My breath caught for a moment when her thumb gently began to trace its outline.

'I, I uh did it myself,' I finally stammered, seeming to impress Elyza who continued to gaze down at it.

'Wow, it's beautiful. I've always loved art,' she said quietly, but I barely heard her, my own focus firmly on her face as she admired the ink. I was acutely aware of the sensation on my arm as her thumb continued to follow the pattern. For a moment I was fixed in that second, not even bothered that she could glance up at any second to see my expression.

I jerked back suddenly when another muted crash sounded from a nearby house, my heart racing at the unexpected noise though Elyza remained unaffected. Not entirely sure what this sudden mood was that had overcome me, I decided to leave Elyza to get some rest. I'd already lingered to long.

'I'd best get back to my room, you need some sleep before you get behind the wheel again,' I insisted, even as I slowly edged towards the door.

'It might be quieter in here than your room, if you cant sleep because of the noise,' Elyza suggested, moving back up to her previous position at the top of the bed. I shook my head without even properly registering what she was saying.

'Sleep well,' I said quickly, pulling the door shut behind me as I retreated into the corridor. What the hell had that been?

I was too tired to dwell on my odd behaviour and instead trudged back to my room and settled on the bed, trying to block out the noise from down the street. Tomorrow we would be on our way to Santa Fe, where we would hopefully be reuniting Elyza with her old group. After all that she had been through I could only hope that she was granted this one moment of happiness, she more than deserved it.

**_Thanks for reading, leave a comment and let me know what you thought! :)_ **

 

 

 

 


	8. Trust No one

Elyza and I set off early the next day, we still had many hours of driving until we reached Santa Fe. I still had no idea who we were meeting or where our specific destination was in Santa Fe, if there even was one.

'So this group of people we're meeting, what are they like?'

Elyza chewed thoughtfully on her gum, pushing back a strand of loose blonde hair that had fallen into her face when a particularly strong breeze had gusted through the open window. It was too hot to keep them closed even as the summer months began to draw to an end.

'Some of the best people I know, they're a crazy bunch but a good kind of crazy,' she said with a smile. 'You'll like them, at least I hope you will.'

It was about the best I could get from her, possibly because she didn't want to build our expectations only to find no trace of them. I had once asked what had happened to separate the group but she had been reluctant to answer, something I was getting used to.

If we did meet up with them in Santa Fe I would get more answers, but for now we just had to focus on getting there. We had been driving for around four hours already, almost half way to our destination when we stopped for a short break. I hopped out of the passenger seat and stretched out my stiff muscles. The road we were on extended in front and behind us in a seemingly endless stretch of abandoned cars. I shielded my eyes from the sun and couldn't even see where it ended in the distance.

'Don't go far Alicia, there could be walkers anywhere.'

Elyza had her head bent over the hood of the car where she had laid out a map to reminded herself of the route. It was with a familiar bubble of annoyance that I was reminded of my mom's constant worry over my safety. She had never felt it necessary for me to use weapons, relying instead on my brother or Daniel to keep an eye on me. It was only with a huge amount of persuasion that she had allowed me to go on a supply run and even then it had been with Nick's assurance that he would keep me safe.

I was done being protected. It was about time I learnt to defend myself.

'Can you teach me how to fight?' I said suddenly, blurting the words out before I could change my mind.

Elyza looked up from the map, regarding me silently before slowly standing upright. I braced myself to receive all the reasons why it would be unnecessary, mentally arguing every point in my head so that I would be prepared. The one thing I didn't expect was to receive a wide grin in response.

'Finally, I thought you would never ask!'

My nervous anticipation at how well the idea would be received melted away in an instant, finding no reservations in Elyza's expression. For whatever reason she was more than willing to share her knowledge and I couldn't have been more relieved.

'It makes sense,' she explained, seeing my surprise at her acceptance. 'I wasn't going to force any kind of training on you, it had to be your decision. Some people embrace the apocalypse and learn to survive in this new, unforgiving world. Though there are those who prefer to hide from it, not wanting to bloody their hands in the fight against the undead. It's up to each individual to decide where they stand.'

She was right as usual. Elyza was a perfect example of the first statement, more than able to fight her own corner in the apocalypse. I had however met people who cowered behind others for protection, more than happy to stay behind the danger line and find a safe place to shelter until a better solution made itself known.

I had been pushed into the second category for so long now, and I couldn't stand it any longer. The apocalypse tended to change people, and now it was my turn to step up.

'I know you'll teach me well.'

'You'd best believe it,' she replied with a grin, moving forwards to stand in front of me. 'Let's run through the basics.'

I hadn't been expecting such immediate action but there was nothing stopping us. We were on an abandoned stretch of road with some time to kill before setting off.

She first ran me through some basic fighting stances before moving on to the more important rules of fighting the undead. Our sessions would be more multi-purpose than anything. There was no saying that I wouldn't be fighting off a someone as well as a something.

'Needless to say go for the brain. A strike to the temple is always a good one to go for. Though never assume it's dead, always check. You don't want to turn your back and find it chewing on your ankle seconds later.'

It was all good advice and I listened carefully to every word, she hadn't survived this long by being careless. We focused on the use of blades for the time being. Firing shots was always a way of attracting more of them, besides I was more comfortable with a blade in hand than a gun.

With our short session over in around thirty minutes, Elyza pulled out the duffel bag of weapons and unzipped it.

'Pick something, anything you want.'

I looked down into the bag and pushed aside the ammo and guns to find the close contact weapons at the bottom. With little hesitation I pulled out the knife, still in its sheath, which got an approving nod from Elyza.

She shoved the bag away and rooted through the trunk of the car to pull out a belt holder which she passed over to me. I strapped it around the waist of my jeans and found that the knife settled comfortably at my hip.

'We've got incoming. Best to make a move before they get here,' Elyza noted, already returning to her side of the car as I glanced over my shoulder.

The long stretch of road gave us the advantage of being able to see further into the distance and I identified a small group of walkers shambling towards us, their figures still small dots at such a distance.

'Always be aware of your surroundings,' Elyza advised, turning the keys in the ignition as I slid into the passenger seat. 'Always assume there's a walker close by and you're prepared for anything.'

We were driving for a few more hours along the seemingly never ending route when Elyza finally pulled off at an exit, the road narrowing asI frowned in confusion.

'Is it not quicker if we continue straight on?' I asked.

'It would be faster yes, but it would also be dangerous going straight through Albuquerque. Best to avoid cities where possible.'

'She says, driving us to one of the largest cities in the state,' I teased.

'Lets call this an exception then,' she grinned. A frown crept onto her face a moment later and I felt the vehicle slow as she gazed out of her window. 'What the hell is this clown doing?'

I lent forward in my seat to peer around her to see what had caught her attention.

A collection of houses were situated just off the road, their boundary marked with a high chain link fence. A man stood at the entrance, desperately pushing against the gates which were the only thing standing between him and at least ten walkers.

He was attempting to secure a chain around the gates to hold them in place but was having no luck with the undead grasping at him through the gap with guttural groans. The thrum of the engine alerted him to our presence and with a quick glance over his shoulder he turned and fled from the creatures.

'You think we're giving you a ride buddy?' Elyza murmured to herself as she watched the walkers force their way through the gate with no opposition before stumbling after the panicked man. He looked to be middle aged, round cheeks burning a bright red as he staggered towards us.

'You're not seriously considering leaving are you?' I exclaimed, reminded of my last attempt to rescue someone. Elyza shook her head, remaining completely relaxed even as they drew closer.

'Don't worry, I'll be nice,' she replied, turning back to flash me a quick smile. My pulse was rapidly picking up speed and almost stopped when the man tripped over his own feet in his rush, thankfully regaining his balance before he became the walkers next meal. 'Though if he falls on his face and gets eaten, I am not responsible.'

The walkers appeared to be fairly fresh from what I could make out. Their movements, although jerky, were surprisingly fast on the slight downhill slope and I silently urged the man to move faster.

When he finally did arrive at the car, his face looked like it was about to explode from the exertion, clearly not a man who kept in shape. He collided with Elyza's door and cast a fearful look over his shoulder before slamming his hands against the metal.

'Help me! Oh God please, let me in!' he cried, rasping breaths accompanying the plea for help and I waited expectantly for Elyza to unlock the doors and allow him access. Instead, she wound the window down, staring him dead in the eye as she raised her handgun and pointed it at him through the gap. His eyes widened and I could almost imagine the conflict in his head as he wondered if he had just stumbled across someone just as dangerous as a walker.

'Elyza,' I breathed quietly behind her, wishing she would just let the poor man in so we could get out of here.

'Hi there, you injured?' Elyza asked him, her tone flat as he stared back in first despair and then annoyance.

'Just let me in, they're going to kill me! Have mercy!' he cried, almost sobbing as the group of walkers closed the distance.

'Yes, they will rip through you without a drop of mercy. Or I could just shoot you right now. So tell me, are you injured?' she repeated, not seeming to care either way what happened to the man.

'No, I'm not. I swear on my children's children! For the love of God will you just let me in!' he shouted, shaking visibly as he faced death from either the barrel of a gun or the walking dead.

I couldn't just sit there and watch the man be devoured right outside the car, so I leaned past Elyza and flicked off the safety latch without a word. The man seemed to forget the gun pointed at him and threw open the back door to launch himself into the passenger seat.

'Now drive,' I instructed the blonde, who tucked her gun away in her jacket with a shrug before stepping on the gas. The grasping hands of the walkers must have been mere inches away when we pulled out onto the main road again, their hisses fading as we left them far behind.

I sat back against the my seat with a deep breath, not yet having mastered Elyza's ability to remain calm no matter what crisis was taking place. A few moments later and the man would have joined the walkers. That, or been shot by Elyza. Not an outcome that I had been willing to let play out.

'Are you okay back there?' I called to the man. He was gasping in deep breaths of air as if he had been deprived of oxygen, his face still a bright red as he held up a thumb in the mirror.

'Yeah, yeah, just catching my breath. No thanks to that psycho,' he muttered, closing his eyes and resting his head back against the headrest with a sigh. Elyza tensed at the insult but made no remark, fixing her gaze ahead on the road.

'That was you being nice?' I growled, unable to believe her reluctance to help this poor man. Without us, his chances of survival would have been slim at best.

'You can't always trust people Alicia,' she retorted, glancing in the mirror warily every few seconds as if he might jump up without warning.

'You can't just let people die because you don't trust them!'

That caught her attention and a flash of annoyance crossed her face. She knew that I was referring to the lady back in California as well as the more recent incident.

'You may think it's harsh, but it's how we're going to survive in this apocalypse.'

This just kept on happening though and I knew that if in that position I would want someone to show me kindness. In fact when I had been in danger, Elyza had saved my life multiple times without any idea who I was.

I was about to launch into another argument as to why she should try harder to help people but was stopped short when the cold, metal muzzle of a gun pressed firmly against the back of my neck.

'Sorry sweetheart, but I'm afraid your friend here is right. Can't trust nobody these days.'

I stopped breathing for a second, pressing my lips together as I realised what a fool I had been. Elyza automatically reached for her own gun but her hand stopped mid-air when the man behind me clicked his tongue in warning. 

'Don't even think about it,' he growled, 'and if this car slows down even a fraction, I will blow your girls brains all over the windshield.'

Elyza's expression darkened at the threat but she slowly brought her hand up to the steering wheel, glowering at the man in her mirror.

'What's your name?' she asked tightly, switching her gaze between the road and the mirror.

'Steve,' he grunted after a slight pause, thrown off guard by the question.

'Well then Steve, listen closely. I will kill you for this, and then I will kill you again when you rise as a walker' she told him, the man shifting slightly at the pure anger in her tone but made no effort to respond. I gulped as the gun continued to press against my neck, fearful that the slightest jolt in the road would cause his finger to tighten around the trigger.

Elyza reluctantly handed over her gun when instructed, not wanting to risk defiance with a weapon pointed at me. Her hands were clasped tightly around the steering wheel as he told us what he wanted.

'I'm glad I bumped into you girls,' he said almost cheerfully, as if we were all best of friends. 'Things were getting a bit out of hand back there.'

'Yeah, you were doing a pretty pathetic job,' Elyza agreed, feeling nothing but fury for this man. I couldn't say I felt any different, though it was accompanied by a heavy sense of disgust.

'I bet you don't even have children do you?' I said without even realising, remembering his earlier promise.

_'I swear on my children's children!'_

I closed my eyes briefly at how naïve I had been. The world certainly had changed since the apocalypse, and not all for the better. Steve chuckled behind me, apparently finding this whole situation very amusing.

'Of course not, little brats. I can't believe you-'

He grunted suddenly and grasped at his chest with a free hand, scrunching his face up in pain before continuing.

'I hate running,' he hissed, massaging his chest firmly. 'Anyway, as I was saying. I need a lift and you're going to provide one. I would ask nicely but it seems we're past that now.'

Elyza bit her lip to stop herself blurting out any insults that would only be rewarded with a bullet in my head. I flicked my eyes in her direction and could see just how tense she was.

'Why don't you just lower the gun now, I'm not going to try anything so-'

I gasped when the gun pushed even harder against my neck, my words cut short by the sudden movement.

'Enough of that, this is your final warning before-'

It was his turn to stop talking when his words morphed into a pained groan and I thought for a second he was going to shoot me by accident when he doubled over on the backseat with panting breaths.

'No, this can't be happening!' he shouted, a glance in the mirror revealing his face now almost a deep shade of purple as he gurgled in pain. He tried to choke out some more words but was unable to, holding his chest with a agonised grimace as he began to writhe in pain.

'Elyza, I think he's having a heart attack,' I whispered, terrified as the heavy weight of the gun remained at my neck. Even in such a state he knew what dropping the weapon would mean for him.

'Yep, I did notice,' Elyza replied, still not able to make a move against him with the weapon still aimed at me. 'The second he turns you're going to have to take him out.'

The road ahead of us was littered with the undead, taking all of Elyza's concentration to weave us through the bodies at such a speed. If she stopped now then it was more than possible that we would not only have one walker to deal with, but several.

'Not if I have anything to with it,' Steve screeched, shaking his head as if to clear his vision. 'If I'm dying then you can...'

His words trailed off as he slumped back into the seat, gun falling from motionless fingers to hit the floor with a thud. I sprang to life a second later, twisting my body around to grasp for the gun but was jerked back by my seatbelt.

With a string of curses falling from my lips, I fumbled at the buckle with shaking hands. Once free of the restraint I grasped for the gun again, desperately stretching out my hand to brush at the weapon with my fingertips.

'Come on Alicia,' Elyza urged next to me, swerving to the left around three walkers who were blocking the road. That momentum was all I needed to get a secure grip on the gun and heaved myself back into my seat without a second to spare. What was once Steve suddenly jolted back to reality with a low moan, his milky eyes rolling around in a crazed manner as he regained the use of his limbs.

This was the short window in which I had a chance to take him out and swiftly raised the gun to point at his head. _Go for the brain,_ I remembered and with barely a second to prepare myself I squeezed the trigger.

_Click._

I stared in horror and pulled on the trigger again.

_Click. Click._

'Son of a-'

My words turned into a scream when the walker lunged forwards with a snarl, it's clawed fingers attempting to grip my shoulder before I pulled free and fell back against the dashboard. In a panic, I grasped at my knife and unsheathed it as the walker switched its attention to Elyza, who was unable to do anything other than duck away from its flailing arms as she drove.

She shoved an elbow back into its distorted features, but that didn't stop it for long and it darted forwards for another try not a moment later. It's gnashing jaws didn't even get close to latching around her arm when my dagger was shoved firmly into the side of its head, causing it to shudder before falling still once more.

I heaved out the dagger with a grunt of effort before shoving hard against its shoulders so that it fell back against the seat, head lolling before It dropped to its side. I kept my eyes fixed on it for a moment until I had convinced myself that it really was dead this time, then twisted back to slump into my seat.

Elyza was easing her foot off the pedal as we came to the end of the tide of walkers who had been spread over the road, all of them now having changed direction to follow our vehicle. We continued on in the near silence for a good few minutes until they were a safe distance behind us. I was still somewhat dazed from the turn of events, everything having happened so quickly I could hardly keep up.

We finally drew to a stop at the end of another lane, this one having no walkers or men running towards us. Elyza threw her door open immediately and hopped out, opening the passenger door so that she could grip the corpse by it's legs and heave it out of the car. He fell to the ground with a heavy thud and Elyza grimaced as she used all of her strength to haul it to the side of the road.

I stepped out of the car, adrenaline still racing through me after the close encounter. I placed a hand on the hood as I steadied by breathing, unable to take my eyes away from the slumped corpse. Elyza dusted off her hands with a disgusted expression and returned to stand at my side.

'And that Alicia, is why we always ask questions before we let just anyone get into the car,' she said, not angry or disapproving as I had anticipated.

'Lesson learnt,' I replied, shuddering as I realised just how much worse that could have gone. One of us could've died, or even both of us. 'I'm sorry I questioned you, it was stupid to think I knew better.'

'Never stop questioning Alicia, as long as you learn from your mistakes.'

She turned her back on the corpse and put a hand gently on my shoulder to turn me away from the sight. Still somewhat in shock, I resisted the motion and turned back to face her.

'It was my fault this happened. I should've known not to trust him. I almost got us both killed.'

It was all coming out now, the blur of words falling from my lips before I could even process what I was saying. The realisation of what had just happened was now becoming clear, Elyza knew better than to let anyone in without questioning their motive. She had been right not to grant the man access so easily.

'It was about to bite you. You would have been turned,' I said in horror, remembering how close the snapping jaws had been to tearing through her arm. I could've rambled on, and most certainly would have if Elyza hadn't taken a single step forwards and pulled me up against her, my face buried in her shoulder as her arms tightened around me.

'I'm fine, you're fine, and that's what matters in the end,' she said soothingly, the worry in my chest easing moments later. I relaxed my grip after a few seconds, aware that I had been clinging on like my life depended on it. No sooner was I relaxed did Elyza step back again, if only so that she could see my face. 

'Not everyone is as kind or honest as you Alicia, the world can be cruel like that,' she told me, and it was a truth that I was slowly coming to terms with. As much as I wanted to see the best in people, it wasn't always there to be found.

'Thank you,' I said simply, not just for what she had done today but ever since we had met. I honestly didn't know what I would do without her.

'Let's get going,' she said softly, aware that we were losing daylight and we had planned to get to Santa Fe before nightfall. We returned to our seats, a comfortable silence settling between us as we drove on through the dry landscape.

This certainly wouldn't be a lesson to forget. I had more trust in Elyza now than ever before, she knew what she was doing and I was certain that I was going to learn a lot from her.

\----

About half an hour later we took an exit off the highway, a sign reading _Los Lunas_ with an arrow directing us to the right. I was concerned at how far we still were from Santa Fe, with night drawing in we would soon have to stop and wait for the morning.

I was about to inquire what Elyza was planning to do when a puff of smoke began to trail from the hood and the engine stuttered weakly as we rolled to a stop.

'Crap,' Elyza muttered, slamming one hand onto the wheel before getting out to inspect the engine. I followed close behind, taking a step back when she lifted up the metal cover to release a billowing cloud of smoke.

'Think you can fix it?' I asked, the fumes tickling my throat and bringing about a few sharp coughs. We backed up further, Elyza waving her hand through the air to clear the smoke. 

'I have many talents Alicia, but mechanic is not one of them,' she sighed, looking sadly at her beloved vehicle. My concern lay with the two heavy suitcases that had been shoved into the trunk. We could hardly continue on foot to the city anyway.

'Now what?'

'We can always scout around on foot for a bit, doesn't look like we'll be getting to Santa Fe today. We can find another car and set off again in the morning.'

Moving on foot didn't exactly appeal to me after the relative safety of travelling by car, but it didn't seem we had much choice. From the amount of smoke currently billowing up from the engine, I doubted it would be in a fit state to travel anywhere.

We left our bags in the car so that we could move faster, planning on returning for them once we had found a suitable place to stay. I had my dagger firmly strapped at my waist and Elyza had her usual blades and handgun. With a last glance back at the broken car, we set off on foot into the village of Los Lunas.

**Leave a comment and tell me what you thought :)**

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


	9. Old Friends

I glanced up at the sky as the light around us continued to fade, we still hadn't decided on a place to stay for the night and time was steadily running out before darkness fell.

'Do you think there'll be room at the inn?' Elyza joked, bag slung over one shoulder as she strode just ahead of me along the wide road.

'Very funny,' I said dryly, casting my gaze around in search of any walkers. A few had picked up our trail from the broken car and had been stumbling along behind us for the last ten minutes. They were slow and so were of little bother to us, I just wanted to get away from them sooner rather than later.

'Come on Alicia, it won't hurt you to crack a smile,' the blonde called over her shoulder, manoeuvring to face me as she continued to walk backwards.

'You're going to fall over in a minute, and when you do I will not be helping you up,' I told her, shoving my hands further into my jacket pockets.

'I'll do it right now if it'll cheer you up,' she replied, spinning a full circle before extending her hands in a flourish.

I couldn't resist a small smile at her antics, side stepping around her to take the lead as she jogged to keep pace at my side. My bad mood wasn't meant to be directed at Elyza, I was just missing my family and so far there had been no luck finding a radio to contact them. Despite our string of bad luck, I knew that I could count on Elyza to make any situation more bearable.

'Ooh, look, _MattressFirm,_ we could put the quality of their products to the test,' Elyza mused, quickly scrapping that idea when a walker in the display window glimpsed us and threw itself against the glass repeatedly in an attempt to break through. 'Hmm, maybe another time.'

The signs advertising fifty percent off had peeled away from the windows, the large sign on the front of the building dim and far from its once pristine condition. I turned my attention away from the store with distaste, drawing to a stop when we reached a crossroad.

'Any preference?' I asked Elyza, glancing both ways indecisively.

'Flip a coin for it?' she suggested lightly, draping an arm over my shoulder which I quickly ducked out of with a frown. She pretended to stumble and cast a look of mock hurt in my direction.

'Are you incapable of taking anything seriously?'

'I am more than aware of our situation thank you, no need to bore ourselves to death in the process,' she returned coolly, leaning her head back to gaze up at the dimming sky.

'Having fun hardly seems appropriate at this time, right now we just need to-'

'Enough already,' Elyza sighed, slipping the bag off of her shoulder and let it drop to the ground with a thud. 'Time for a spontaneous training session.'

I stopped walking and looked over at her, was she serious?

'You clearly need to work a few things out of your system before you can even begin to relax so lets get on with it,' she explained, rolling her shoulders in preparation.

I cast my gaze around, wary of any walkers that might attack whilst we were preoccupied but the only two that I saw were in a tangled heap beneath an overturned car, their exposed limbs twitching occasionally under the metal.

From experience I knew that Elyza would not be deterred from her decision and reluctantly dropped my own bag to the ground with a sigh. Might as well get this over with. Thoughts of my family were weighing on my mind and combined with the lack of appropriate accommodation for the night, it had not left me in the best mood. If Elyza wanted a fight then she would get one.

Elyza threw some punches at me without warning, my reflexes allowing me to curve away from them with relative ease. I retaliated with a few jabs of my own, pushing Elyza back a few steps in response. These sessions had been few and far between for the last few days, but I picked up everything she had to show me with relative ease.

A swift kick was thrown my way but I blocked it with my forearm, earning an approving look from Elyza as we both drew back.

'Can we just get moving now?' I asked, tired of wasting time on this pointless activity.

'You won't be complaining when it saves your life, or would you rather just fall flat on your back without any survival skills?'

I scowled lightly at the prospect, that was not who I was anymore. I would put up a decent fight if the situation required, I didn't want or need any protection from this world. Without even realising what was happening, I launched myself forward into a sprint towards Elyza.

A flicker of surprise registered on her face before I collided with her and then we were both falling, the impact softened by the grass that I had manoeuvred us towards by the sidewalk. A woosh of air escaped the blondes lips and in the split second that it took her to recover I had my dagger raised to her throat. She stilled in an instant, flicking her eyes up to my teasing smile.

'Who's flat on their back now?' I smirked, careful to keep the blade a safe distance from her exposed neck. She grinned back humorously, not even a hint of annoyance present at being tackled to the ground.

I had no doubt that she would have responded with an equally witty comment but I didn't have chance to find out when the sound of thudding steps pounded across the concrete of the road without warning. I glanced up sharply in surprise, barely having time to register the leather clad girl thundering towards me with a primal screech before she collided with me as I had done to Elyza not moments ago.

The knife flew from my hand as I hit the ground, twisting to relieve the pressure on my arm before a knee was placed firmly onto my back to ensure that I was immobilised on the ground. My cheek burned as it pressed against the concrete road and confusion swirled through my thoughts as I tried to process exactly what was going on.

'What the hell do you think you're doing?' Elyza growled, and I heard her scramble upright somewhere behind me. 'Get off her Octavia.'

More footsteps were heard jogging closer though how many I could not guess. There was a heartbeat of silence before the girl responded.

'You know her?'

'Of course I know her, why else would I let her tackle me like that!'

The weight on my back eased the slightest bit as the girl hesitated, still unsure of the threat that I posed. For just a second I was tempted to tell Elyza that she had by no means _let me_ tackle her, but I decided that it was probably not the best idea to try speaking whilst this ferocious girl was positioned on my back.

'You heard her O, stand down,' a male voice instructed, the weight finally disappearing on my back to allow me to breathe once more. I gasped in a breath and rolled onto my back, blinking against the sun to see five faces peering down at me, one of which being Elyza's worried frown.

The dark haired man, presumably the one who had given the order, reached out a hand which I gratefully excepted and was pulled up to my feet. I wobbled for a second before Elyza stepped closer, knocking back the boy's grip on my hand to look me over.

'You okay?' she asked, ignoring the new arrivals in favour of my well being.

'I'm fine, what exactly is happening?' I said quietly, my gaze darting to the small group that had formed around us. The leather clad girl was still watching me suspiciously, three men also watching us with narrowed eyes.

Elyza didn't offer an explanation but instead turned to the taller, dark haired man and a small smile lifted her lips.

'Well look who it is,' she said almost in disbelief. 'You've looked better.'

'I could say the same for you,' he retorted, the two of them just staring in silence for a moment before the distant sound of an engine shattered the peace. The girl, Octavia, snapped her gaze down the road where we had just been walking, a darkness falling over her expression.

'Save the reunion for later, we need to get out of sight. This way,' she told us, setting off at a fast jog to the nearest building. I shot Elyza a confused glance but she shook her head, this wasn't the time to be asking questions. We followed the girl as the three boys bringing up the rear behind us. A collection of storage garages were situated just ahead of us, _West Side Storage_ the sign read as we raced past.

Octavia ignored the closest two storage containers and knelt in front of the third to pull on the handle and slide the cover open. We ducked inside when it was half way open, Bellamy ushering us all in before he to stepped inside and hastily pulled the cover back down.

I was surprised to find the interior to be somewhat spacious, going back a good few metres to provide more than enough room for all of us. The lack of lighting left me peering at the dark silhouettes that were highlighted by the dim light filtering through the gaps. With seconds to spare, we heard the roar of an engine approaching from outside before it went silent.

The person closest to me, presumably Bellamy, gestured to get everyone's attention and raised a finger to his lips in a clear signal. We all stood motionless, not daring to move as we listened intently to the distant mumble of voices.

'You sure the smoke came from this direction?' a rough voice called out, barely audible from inside the storage container. The fact that we could hear them meant that they were either very close, or they were not afraid of attracting walkers by being loud.

'It sure did, and we know they're last sighting was not a few miles away from here so keep an eye out for them,' another replied, the voices falling silent again and I gulped at the prospect that our broken down car had drawn these people here. Was it Elyza and I that they were looking for?

The sound of wood splintering was heard as they presumably kicked in the doors of the nearby buildings, rapidly followed by the shot of a weapon ripping through the air. I winced and took an involuntary step back at the sudden noise, colliding with someone stood at my back. My mouth opened for a split second to mumble an apology but pressed my lips together again before I could alert these strangers to our position.

A hand grasped mine lightly and I glanced over my shoulder in relief to see that it was Elyza, her features barely visible but the reassuring grip on my hand steadied my nerves and I could easily imagine the comforting smile that she was sending my way.

Another shot went off, followed by a third, had they inadvertently stumbled across more walkers?

'Goddam it, there's nothing here but walkers man, lets just head back,' the first voice shouted out to the other. A heartbeat of silence followed the comment before the second man spoke.

'Fine, we've still got one of theirs so they'll be back without a doubt. Move out!'

I frowned, realising that Elyza and I hadn't been the target of this search party and glanced at the other shadowy figures around me. What trouble were these people in?

The engine outside roared into life once more and faded away to nothing within a few minutes. Regardless, we stood in silence for at least another five before Bellamy tentatively peeked through the gap to make sure they really had gone and this was not some trick to expose our position. He finally turned to us, certain that they were gone.

'Listen up, they've just stirred up at least five walkers from what I can see, we just need to make it past them and get somewhere safe for the night. We can return to base tomorrow.'

'You make it sound so simple,' one of the boys muttered with undisguised sarcasm, receiving a scathing glare from Octavia.

'Shut up Murphy, we can take out those in our path and get back safely. No heroics.'

'Exactly,' Bellamy agreed, looking at each of us in turn. 'Me and Octavia will take the lead. Elyza, you and your friend can follow us whilst Murphy and Atom bring up the rear.'

Everyone nodded and with a count of three Bellamy pulled up the cover fully and we exited in formation. My mouth was dry with the realisation that I had no weapons on hand, the knife still back on the road where Octavia had knocked me over. In the sudden panic of the vehicle approaching it had not even registered to go and retrieve it but to get to relative safety as fast as possible.

Elyza was at my side, gun at the ready, and my worry receded to know that she had my back. I didn't know these people, even if Elyza did, and I wasn't about to put complete faith in them. As we emerged back onto the road, the walkers that had been following the vehicle twisted back to us with a collection of groans.

Octavia and Bellamy strode forwards and took down the two closest, the girl using a sword that I hadn't seen earlier strapped across her back. It kept the noise to a minimum to ensure no other walkers were drawn to our location. The other four walkers were still some distance down the road and so Bellamy and Octavia retreated back to our group and led us down in the opposite direction, away from where we had previously been.

We moved at a steady jog, thankfully not running into any trouble as we continued down the wide road. There was little to see around us other than the abandoned cars surrounded by the wide stretches of open land on either side. We took the next right turning down a smaller road and came to a stop not five minutes later outside a block of apartments. I glanced over my shoulder, expecting to see the undead closing the distance but it was clear.

'We'll stay here for the night, it's already been cleared out but you should be on your guard nevertheless,' Bellamy advised, gesturing for us to the approach the buildings. We passed the entrance sign which read _Encantada Appartments._ I just hoped they were as Enchanting as it promised.

'What are you going to do?' I called back when I saw that Bellamy was still stood by the side of the road. He looked back in mild surprise at my question, possibly not having expected any concern from a stranger.

'The walkers are stupid, most likely they'll just continue straight on but if not for some reason, I'll make sure they're dealt with. Now get inside.'

Elyza pulled on my arm to get us moving again, and after one lingering look back we left him behind in the shadows. We settled on the B block as our accommodation for the night, it was one of the closest and Octavia assured us it had been swept for walkers just the previous day. It seemed reasonable enough, we had stayed in worse places since the apocalypse and very few had actually provided a bed for a decent rest.

We were ushered inside, Octavia closing the door at our backs before she returned to where Bellamy was standing guard by the road. Murphy and Atom went ahead to double check each room on the floor and I lightly grabbed Elyza's wrist as she moved to follow them.

'Elyza, what's going on?' I asked her, feeling like we had just been swept up in a hurricane of trouble.

'We just achieved what we set out for,' she said with a smile. 'These are the people I was telling you about. As for what mess they're caught up in I have no clue, but we did it Alicia.'

I found myself smiling back at her, it seemed that our journey to Santa Fe was over, we had found them. Excitement burned in my chest, this was the first group of people I had come across since losing my family. If they had a radio then I could finally try to get in contact with them. My earlier reservations about our travel to Santa Fe had disappeared entirely, this was the hope we had been searching for.

**Thanks for reading, leave a comment and tell me what you thought :)**


	10. Memories

The apartment block was larger than I had expected, even just on the first floor. There were three bedrooms, one of which had twin beds, along with a kitchen and sitting area with a large dining table situated in the centre.

I was in the ensuite bathroom that connected with the twin bedroom, a flashlight in one hand as I tilted my head towards the mirror. My cheek was burning after Octavia's tackle had driven me face first into the concrete road. I would have to thank her for that later.

Elyza's reflection appeared in the mirror, leaning against the door frame as I dabbed at my cheek with a wet cloth to remove any fine pieces of gravel.

'Let me take a look,' she said after a few moments of observation. I met her gaze in the mirror and shook my head.

'It's alright, I can do it.'

'Alicia ,' she said firmly, 'come over here and let me see.'

She pushed away from the doorframe and retreated back into the twin bedroom. I followed a second later, sitting down on the bed next to her before handing over the cloth and torch.

'So what's the story with these guys?' I asked, never having received a straight answer as to what had caused Elyza to leave the group and face the apocalypse solo.

'It's complicated,' she finally replied, pausing for a moment as I winced before she continued to gently clean the scratch on my cheek.

'I've got nowhere better to be.'

Elyza sighed lightly, knowing that I would only ask the others if she refused to talk.

'Fine, just stop talking so I can actually clean this,' she instructed, taking her mind back to a time before we had ever met.

 _ **Elyza's POV**_ **(Many months ago)**

I gazed down at the table that was covered in weapons and ammo, making a mental note of how many bullets we had left. It was looking better than I had expected. If you added on the ammo that each of us were carrying around in our own personal weapons then we wouldn't have to worry about running out in the immediate future.

'Looks like we're covered for the moment, get all of this boxed up again and lock it up.'

The girl at my side nodded and began the laborious task of placing all of the weapons back into the oblong box which she had only recently emptied. Her name escaped me for the moment, and I watched her discretely for a number of seconds before mentally pushing the distraction aside. It would come to me.

I turned my attention to the young boy stood by the armchair, propping himself up with a baseball bat that he had become inseparable from after using it as a defence against the walkers.

'I've done a sweep of the house and we only have enough food for another day at most,' he reported with a hint of dismay, having hoped to return with better news. I wasn't surprised at his words, I had expected as much but was hoping to have enough food for at least the rest of the week.

'You did well,' I assured him, 'do you think you would be able to check in with Bellamy? He should be out back with the others.'

The little boy, Noah, smiled brightly and nodded eagerly before scampering out of the room to complete his task. He loved to be useful and was more than happy to run any errands that we assigned him. It kept the rascal out of trouble at the very least.

I turned back to the girl, whose name I now remembered to be Harper, and gave her a hand with the weapons. We had scavenged many of them, compiling them together to be used by any scouting parties that left to patrol the neighbourhood. There had to be a system or we would run out of ammo and have weapons unaccounted for all over the place.

Every member of the group had a weapon of sorts, whether it be a baseball bat or a knife. Firearms however were reserved for those leaving the house on scavenging missions. With young children in the house it wasn't sensible to leave them lying around, but they were still accessible in case of emergency.

I pulled the lid onto the box and clipped the padlock in place when we were finished, both of us taking an end each to lift it up into one of the top cupboards. I rubbed my dusty hands against my jeans and thanked Harper for her help. Moments later the door to the spare room opened and a group of people filed in laughing and shoving each other.

Bellamy was running training sessions out in the area that served as a back garden, ensuring that everyone had some semblance of fighting skills for their inevitable encounter with the walkers. With a food shortage looming, he had sent out a select few that would form a scavenging party.

There would be six of us going in total. I listed off their names in my head to commit them to memory. Jasper, Nathan, Jessica, Mia and Murphy with me leading the group. Jessica had only been with us a few days but the others I knew fairly well after many weeks of surviving together.

'Take your pick of weapon and we'll set off right away,' I told them, gesturing to the table where a selection of firearms and melee options were available. They all grabbed their weapon of choice without delay, a wide grin on Murphy's face as he twirled the axe in his grip and swung it experimentally.

'Save that for the walkers,' Bellamy advised from the doorway, fixing the man with a warning stare. Murphy rested the wooden handle of the axe against his shoulder and whistled a merry tune as he maintained eyes contact and sauntered straight past Bellamy and out into the corridor.

I rolled my eyes at the theatrics, wondering if Bellamy had selected him just to get him out of the house for a few hours. Murphy was a natural trouble maker and loved nothing more than winding us all up. In the end he was stuck with us and a decent fighter so we put up with his attitude.

Bellamy circled around the gathering of people who were slowly filtering out of the room behind Murphy to wait outside.

'Sure you don't want me to take this one?' he offered, a fine layer of sweat covering his forehead from the exertion of holding scheduled training sessions throughout the afternoon.

'You're needed here,' I said with a shake of my head, 'besides, I can handle Murphy any day.'

He wasn't a bad person really, we wouldn't allow him to stay here if that was the case. It was just his approach to dealing with the apocalypse, and that was something that he had to sort out for himself.

'Just be careful okay,' he said, picking my handgun up from the table top to pass over to me.

'You don't need to tell me twice,' I replied with a smile, holstering the gun at my waist before reaching for the sword that nobody had selected and slid it into the sheath that was strapped to my back.

It was never chosen by the others so I had finally claimed it, not wanting such a fine weapon to go to waste. The handgun had been in my possession even before we had formed this group and there was no question about who it belonged to.

'I'll trade you a surf shift if you find me some batteries,' he added as I strode past him to the front entrance.

'You got it,' I called over my shoulder, raising an arm in acknowledgement before I emerged outside to gather the group.

Surf shift was the name that was used to refer to the task of flicking through all of the radio channels for a set amount of time on the off chance that someone would be alive on the other end. We did this once or twice a week, sharing the shifts between us on a rota. I never looked forward to my turn, finding it more depressing than anything to sit there and hear nothing but silence in response.

'Are you planning on setting off before the sun sets,' Murphy rumbled absentmindedly in a low voice, swinging his axe at invisible enemies with an air of impatience.

'Don't worry Murphy, you'll be back before your bedtime,' I retorted, my comment not bothering him in the slightest as he returned the axe to his shoulder.

'Well I'd hate to interrupt you're highly important conversation with the muscle, but time is short and apparently so is our food supply,' he drawled, not caring when I ignored him entirely and gestured with my arm for the group to fall in behind me as we left the driveway behind and continued on down the street.

Regular patrols ensured that the immediate area around the bungalow was safe but the further away you got the higher the risk was of an encounter with walkers. Most of us in this small group had combat experience, with the exception of Jessica and Mia who had only ever seen the walkers be taken down. Jasper was not one to enjoy violence but when the situation called for it he was able to step up and do what had to be done.

'Eyes sharp people,' I called out, it had now been almost twenty minutes since we had set out. 'Be prepared for anything.'

We tried to take out some of the less experienced of our group on these missions to give them an opportunity to adapt and adjust to being a survivor. They would have to learn one day or another, so best it be amongst more seasoned individuals who could offer some security.

I stopped a few minutes later, deciding that we had come far enough. We had to travel further each time as we cleared out each building in turn. This area had been swept by a patrol in preparation a few days earlier but that wasn't to say we wouldn't run into trouble.

'We'll pair off and take a house. One bag per pair and rendezvous out here once you've gathered everything.'

Everyone nodded in understanding, even Murphy who looked impatient to get started.

'Nathan and Jessica take this one,' I said pointing to the house on the left. Nathan shouldered the back pack as I paired the others up and assigned them a bungalow. I paired Jasper with Murphy, and had Mia accompany me.

Jasper and Mia had been virtually inseparable since she had joined our group just under a month ago. They had formed a strong bond but it was good for them to mix with the others, something I took every opportunity to organise. They needed to get along and trust everyone without only relying on each other.

Jasper frowned with disappointment but they both went to stand by their assigned partner with little hesitation. With one last check for questions, I let them go and led Mia up to what must have once been a very picturesque and well kept bungalow.

Currently it was rundown and dirty, it's once pristine flower display full of weeds, the light blue mailbox peeling and bent at a sharp angle. I drew my handgun and signalled for Mia to stay close as I pushed the door open and swept the entrance for any emerging walkers. I kept the weapon raised when no danger presented itself and continued on to the kitchen as Mia gripped her bat tightly and ventured into the sitting area.

I pulled open a few of the drawers, retrieving a knife from one of them and placing it on the side to be collected later. Mia had the bag, and I could hear her searching through the adjacent room for any supplies.

Her head popped around the doorway a few minutes later as I was rifling through some of the lower cupboards.

'I've not found a lot so I'm just going to check the garage out,' she informed me, disappearing again when I hummed a murmur of acknowledgement.

There had to be some batteries here somewhere. I dug through the clutter one final time before closing the cupboard door with a sigh. It looked like I would be doing the surf shift after all.

A high pitched scream sounded from outside and I jumped into action, sprinting down the corridor and out of the house to the garage at its side. Mia was clutching her arm when I stepped inside, blood trickling through the torn material of her shirt. I focused the gun on the man stood in front of her, his arms raised defensively with a knife in one hand.

'Drop it,' I instructed, prepared to pull the trigger if he made any move to use the weapon again. He seemed conflicted for a moment, shaking lightly as he let it fall to the ground.

'I'm sorry, I...I thought-,'

'Shut it,' I said, switching my gaze to Mia. 'You should go and clean that up, there might be some cloths in the bathroom.'

She nodded, still clutching her arm, and left without a sound.

I looked back at the man, gripping my gun tighter when I saw how he lent his weight on the right foot, the left trouser leg torn and bloodied. It didn't look like any wound from a weapon so I assumed he had been bitten.

'Talk.'

His appearance was dishevelled, even without the torn trousers, his short hair was a mess and it looked like he hadn't changed clothes in weeks.

'I thought it had come back,' he confessed, the words tumbling from his mouth as he spoke quickly. His eyes darted around nervously and it looked like he wanted nothing more than to run and hide. Mia must have surprised him when she entered the garage.

'It being a walker? Did it do that?' I asked, gesturing to his injured leg. The man nodded aggressively, seeming to shrink back into himself at the memory. I paused, his words catching up with me. He had been worried that it had come back.

'Where was this?' I asked with a sinking feeling of dread.

'Back in the house, it-'

I wasn't there to hear the rest of his sentence, running instead back into the house as I shouted out to Mia. By the time I arrived it was already too late.

The bathroom door was swung open, key still in the lock from where the man had shut in the walker. Mia was screaming in terror as it gripped her tightly and buried its teeth into her neck.

I rapped sharply on the doorframe and it raised its head for a second in which I was able to send a bullet straight into its forehead, narrowly missing Mia's cheek in the process. It gurgled faintly as it fell like a weighted stone to the ground in a heap. Mia lurched forwards with a sob and fell to her knees, blood streaming between her fingers as she clamped a hand to her neck.

For a moment I couldn't bring myself to move, staring down in horror as her cries filled the air. I snapped out of my trance and moved to help her up, hooking a hand under around her waist to half drag her out of the bathroom. It was too small a space for us to be crammed in with the dead walker.

A cloth was discarded on the floor which Mia had planned to clean the wound on her arm with. I reached down and grasped the material before continuing to haul Mia out of the building. Her knees buckled and her weight dragged me down until I had no choice to lay her down as gently as I could on the grass.

Mia pushed my hand away when I attempted to place the cloth against her neck to stem the flow of blood, her eyes glassy with tears as she heaved in deep breaths. We both knew that it was pointless.

'Don't let me-' she started, a painful cough interrupting her words that spattered the ground next to her with dark red liquid as she turned her head away from me. Talking was an effort that she could barely achieve, her mouth moving silently as her eyes pleaded with me to end this.

'Do it,' she sputtered, closing her eyes momentarily as I rose slowly to my feet. 'Please.'

The blood was continuing to flow from her neck, her face paling as she came closer to losing consciousness. I lifted the gun, pausing to allow the shaking in my hand to cease as I tightened my finger around the trigger.

'I'm so sorry,' I whispered, the words drowned out by the deafening boom of the gun in my hand.

Footsteps sounded in the silence that followed, drawn by the noise, gaining volume as they neared.

'No!' Jasper shouted as he witnessed the bloody scene before me. He raced past me in a blur, falling to his knees beside Mia's body with an anguished cry. 'What did you do?'

I stared down at the still body in silence. _What had to be done,_ I thought to myself. That was not what Jasper needed to hear right now. The rest of the group were gathered behind me, and I turned slowly to look at each of them. Some expressions were horrified, others settling into a detached sadness to see their friend in such a way.

My gaze fell on Murphy last.

'You had to,' he said calmly, none of the usual malice or sarcasm in his tone. Only truth.

I dropped my gaze, holstering the gun as my stomach continued to twist over what had just happened. My attention was refocused when a flurry of movement behind me signalled the man from earlier emerging from the garage into the dimming light of the afternoon.

He lurched forwards unsteadily, unfocused eyes darting wildly at the gathering of people. He whimpered something inaudible, pain creasing his features as he gestured to the clearly festering wound above his ankle that was visible now that he had pulled up the trouser leg.

It looked like he was about to drop any minute, his skin a sickly shade of grey, his motions already close to that of a walker. I knew what had to be done, but my chest was already heavy enough with Mia's recent death.

Before I could collect myself sufficiently to draw my weapon and deal with the man, Murphy was already striding past me with determination. It was almost casual how he brought the axe down in a controlled arc to become buried in the mans head with a sickening crunch. It did nothing to help my already knotted stomach.

Murphy braced his leg against the man's chest and pulled the weapon free after a few sharp tugs. His expression was neutral, not even reacting to the clear horror with which everyone was staring at him.

'What the hell Murphy?' Nathan breathed, his arm wrapped around Jessica who had buried her face in his shoulder.

'He was going to turn, someone had to do it,' Murphy said with unwavering calm, shrugging lightly as he shouldered the axe. 'We should get back to base before we lose all the light.'

Jasper was still bent over Mia's body, unaware of anything that was happening around him. I let Nathan handle the negotiation of leaving, I was the last person he wanted to talk to. After some time it became clear that Jasper had no intention of leaving Mia here, and Nathan resorted to lifting the girl in his arms with as much dignity as he could manage.

Jasper turned to me with a snarl, his eyes puffy from uncontrollable tears.

'I will never forgive you for this.'

For a moment I thought he would hit me, I wouldn't have bothered to block the blow if he had. But he merely turned and trudged behind Nathan as he held Mia lightly in his arms.

The walk back to base was completed in torturous silence, with everyone giving Nate and Jasper a wide birth as they strode ahead. Mia was the first of our group to die, there had been no life-threatening incidents before and it had left us all in mild shock.

It could only be the start of more casualties, though before now we had felt almost untouchable in our group. As long as we stuck together everything would be okay. Turned out that had been far from the truth. In the apocalypse, you're never safe.

_**Alicia's POV (Present)** _

'It had to be done, I know that, though I couldn't help but feel responsible for what had happened, and the others could never see me again in the same way.'

I watched silently as Elyza reflected on the past, waiting for her to continue

'For the next few days I just needed some space to be alone, so I left the house every evening to sit by the old church and just think. I wasn't religious in any way, but it was gated and therefore one of the safest places to go.'

Elyza had finished cleaning my cheek some time ago, and she glanced down at the cloth absentmindedly before dropping it onto the bed beside her.

'The boy that I told you about at the beginning, Noah, he had been put under house arrest for his own safety. All the young children had. But one night he found a way to sneak out and he followed me. Well, he tried to,' Elyza explained, sadness creeping over her face.

'He was trying to be discrete, hiding around bungalows as he trailed me from a distance to see where I was disappearing every night. He only wanted to make sure I was okay. He must have stumbled across a walker at some point, and I continued on oblivious. I found him on my way back a few hours later.'

She sighed lightly at the awful memory, not something that anyone would want to recall.

'He had already turned, but I couldn't just leave him like that,' she told me, not needing to elaborate further. 'That was the second member of our group that I had to take care of. He was only 12.'

Shooting walkers was not easy in the first place, especially when they were close to you. Children were especially difficult.

'That night I returned, grabbed my things and made the decision to leave. I told Bellamy what had happened and, though he tried his best, nothing he said could convince me to stay.'

Facing the apocalypse was bad enough in itself, how Elyza had been managing it alone I did not understand.

'On my own there was no responsibility for other peoples lives. No one could die from my mistakes, there was only myself to think about.'

There was a moment of silence as I considered that.

'And did it work?'

'In a way yes. But its also easy to lose yourself when you're on your own.'

I remembered my first few days with Elyza. How she had come across with a sense of coldness and detachment. It was a stark contrast to how caring I had seen her become over the last few weeks.

'Well it's a good thing you found me,' I said with a smile, thinking how differently things might have turned out for both of us if we hadn't met that night.

'Yeah, yeah it is,' Elyza replied, a smile growing on her own lips.

I only turned away from her gaze when a knock sounded on the door frame and I glanced up to see Bellamy stepping into the room.

'You made it back,' I said, slowly rising to my feet. 'Was there any trouble.'

Bellamy shook his head.

'The walkers carried on straight ahead as predicted, they won't be causing us any trouble.'

I was glad to hear it, we all deserved a night off from the chaos.

'Well, I'll leave you guys to catch up,' I said hurriedly, sensing that they had a lot to talk about. Bellamy smiled in thanks and stepped aside so that I could pass him.

I shut the door gently behind me to give them some privacy. I was still processing everything that Elyza had told me, and I hesitated in the corridor for a few moments. Finally, I decided to go and join the others, it looked like we would be staying with these people for a while so I might as well try to get along with them.

**Thanks for reading, leave a comment and let me know what you thought! :D**


	11. Follow The Leader

Alicia POV

I hovered in the doorway for a few moments as I gauged what my new travelling companions were doing with their time. Octavia sat on the arm of the ancient looking couch, angled towards the window so that she could cast her gaze out over the motel entrance. Atom and Murphy could be heard through the thin walls of the next room going through drawers and cupboards as they exchanged what they considered to be witty comments. 

A number of candles had been lit throughout the room, now that darkness had fallen outside it was our only source of light. 

After a slight hesitation I moved further into the room and claimed the side of the couch furthest from Octavia, who continued to stare unblinkingly out of the window. She seemed to be a tough character, undoubtedly shaped by the new world to survive whatever came her way. After being tackled to the ground by the girl, I had no reservations about her ability to take on danger, living or otherwise.

'Gum?' I offered, remembering the packet that I had been saving, shoved safely into the back pocket of my jeans. 

'Sure,' the she said, swivelling on the arm of the couch to face me. 'You found it?'

'Well, Elyza did, but she let me keep hold of it,' I explained, pulling out the foil packet to hand over a strip. 

Octavia said nothing in return and popped the gum in her mouth, resting an arm on the cushion as she observed me curiously. 

'What's the story between you two?' Octavia inquired, 'When Elyza left she wasn't exactly in the mood for company.'

'She saved my life, multiple times really. My family were long gone and I guess we sort of got stuck with each other,' I said slowly, not needing or wanting to go into the finer details. 

Octavia snorted, miraculously managing not to choke on her gum in the process. 

'I should've guessed, Elyza could never resist a damsel in distress,' she chuckled, noting how I immediately bristled at the comment. 

'Things have changed since then, I can handle myself.'

Octavia nodded, the humour falling away as her expression returned to it's previous seriousness.  

'I'm sure you can, Elyza wouldn't keep company with a useless dead weight, there must be something she sees in you.'

I paused, meeting her gaze, unsure if this was one of her concealed insults but there was no malice in her eyes. The tension fell away as a smirk grew on her lips.

'You could pass the mark on your cheek off as a battle scar, unless you'd rather tell people what really happened.'

'I think you'll find I had just bested Elyza before you intervened and took me off guard,' I scoffed, reminded of the sting in my cheek now that she mentioned it. It must have been convincing if Octavia had considered me a threat to her friend. 

'Well maybe one day we'll have a spar and see what you're really made of,' she said, clearly confident that there was no competition on my part. 

'From what I've seen it looks like you were raised to by assassins, you could always give me a few pointers though,' I suggested, not fancying my chances against her anytime in the future. 

'Smart,' Octavia commented, 'I see why Elyza likes you.'

And just like that it seemed that the air between us cleared. Any early suspicions about my presence had dissolved and I found myself liking this girl, her attitude and bravado a fresh experience.

\---

Elyza's POV

'And he turned in the backseat?'

I nodded, recalling the time when Alicia and I had been pressed into giving someone a lift. We hadn't made that mistake since. 

'Sounds like you've been having quite the adventure,' Bellamy added from where he sat next to me on the lumpy mattress. 

'I'm sure it's not been easy going for you guys either. What were you doing in this area anyway?'

I could tell that something was wrong, I knew Bellamy well enough in that respect. Something had happened and he had brought the small group to Santa Fe for a reason. Octavia, Murphy and Atom may not have gotten along all of the time, but they worked well together and were a selection of the most adept survivors from the group. That had to mean something. 

'I'll fill you and Alicia in at the same time later, no point telling the same story twice,' he finally replied. 'You two seem to be quite the close unit, I'm glad you found someone.'

We had come across more than a few grief stricken individuals in the past who had been driven near crazy by the relentless pressure of surviving on a day to day basis without a single soul to keep them company. Some had never thought that they would see another living human again. I believed myself to be strong enough to avoid such a dark outcome, but it was certainly more bearable in this new world with a friendly face at your side. 

'Who's running operations whilst you're away?' I asked, the thought suddenly occurring to me that Octavia would usually be overseeing the base if Bellamy was away. 

'I've left the place in Ravens capable hands.'

'Good choice, she'll keep everything running smoothly.'

Bellamy would have no reason to rush back to base with it taken care of. I couldn't think of a better person to take the reins. 

'We've been gone for almost a week now though,' Bellamy explained, 'we should be getting back soon or they'll start to worry.'

'I'm glad you're all doing well, I wasn't sure if I would actually see any of you again,' I confessed, having accepted that my departure could have been very final. Anything could have happened in my absence.

'It's definitely good to see you again, you've not changed a bit,' Bellamy replied, smiling fondly at the many memories we shared. 

'You've become soft,' I teased, bumping him with my shoulder. He smiled back, but I could still see the tension that lined his expression, worries not far from mind even in this relatively safe environment. 

I rose to my feet and stretched, rocking my head to the side, easing the stiffness in my neck. 

'Lets fill the others in on the plan for tomorrow, then we can get some rest,' I said, tiredness beginning to creep up on me, and Bellamy nodded his agreement. 

I was surprised to see a smile on both of the girls faces when Bellamy and I finally returned to the living area. An expression that, from what I could remember, was often difficult to draw from Octavia. 

Alicia appeared surprisingly relaxed in this unexpected situation, eyes wide as she listened intently to what was most likely one of Octavia's many impressive tales of close encounters with danger. I had heard them all before, and witnessed a handful, from hoards of the dead in an underground parking lot, to an intense show down with a gang of gun wielding nutters. 

After being thrown in with this new group of people I was pleased to see that Alicia was settling in well, even managing a light laugh at Octavia's wild gestures. 

'Oh hey,' Octavia managed, her eyes fixing in my direction as Bellamy and I stepped fully into the room. 

'Hey to you, anything exciting I've missed?'

Bellamy slipped past me as I came to a halt, claiming the armchair opposite the couch on which Octavia and Alicia shared an unreadable glance. 

'I was just getting Alicia to clarify how easily she put you on your back, just to make sure I didn't miss any details,' Octavia said mockingly, resting one arm lazily over the back of the couch as the glint in her eyes dared me to argue the point. 

'Alright children, can we have an adult conversation now? Just for a moment, then you can get back to whatever this is,' Murphy drawled, leaning nonchalantly against the door frame. 

'You're one to talk,' Octavia scoffed, earning a glare from Murphy as he moved into the room and flopped down onto the floor, settling into a cross-legged position by the table. 

'Sorry that I want to get out of this flea pit and back to base,' he muttered, gesturing to our surroundings with disdain, almost knocking the candle from the table in the process. 

I ignored his complaints and went to pull a chair over from the dining area, positioning it between the couch and the armchair so that I could see everyone. Atom soon entered after Murphy and took a similar position on the floor, hunching forwards so that he didn't accidently knock over the poor excuse for a television balanced on the wooden unit behind him. 

'It's about time we all got caught up to speed,' Bellamy began, making sure everyone was listening before he continued. 'We didn't just leave base for the hell of it, there's a more pressing issue than just collecting supplies.' 

He filled Alicia and I in on their current situation. It seemed that a rival group of survivors had decided that their territory had been invaded, having claimed that Santa Fe was theirs by all rights. As a large group of thugs by the sounds of it, there wasn't any point in arguing the stupidity of that statement with them. They were terrorising any and every group they happened to run into. 

'So why not just leave, find somewhere new to set up,' Alicia asked when there was a pause in the story. 

'It's not quite that easy,' Octavia spoke up, a hint of anger already in her voice before she had even explained. 'They took one of ours.'

'We sent out a group on a supply run, just like any other day of the apocalypse. They got run off the road by those animals and before anyone could react they had grabbed Nathan.'

I could remember the last time I had seen Nathan, before I had left the group, he had been looking after some of the youngest members of the group with his boyfriend Bryan. That had been one of the better days, when the sound of laughter had not just been on the rare occasion. 

Bellamy continued to tell us how it was almost certainly a hostage situation, a ploy to prevent any attack on their base and have leverage to make whatever demands they saw fit. They had already sent a couple of their thugs to claim food. They had more than enough of their own inside the well defended prison that they had claimed, but it seemed to be more for sport than anything else. Something to keep their days interesting. 

'How are you planning to get him back? From what you say the prison is pretty much impenetrable' Alicia pointed out, clearly concerned to hear what was happening to these people. 

'That's the thing, we have no idea,' Murphy cut in, leaning back on his hands. 'We've been circling the area for a few days, trying to find some way in, but there's nothing.'

I couldn't imagine how Bryan was dealing with this, it wasn't the news any of us wanted to hear. 

'Right now we just need to get back to base with more supplies, we've been gone too long already,' Bellamy said, and I could see how much it angered him to be unable to help his friend. The immediate concern was the survival of those back at base, and we had exactly what they needed. 

'What supplies?' Atom remarked, 'In case you hadn't noticed this place has been wiped clean.'

'That's where we come in,' I told him, 'Alicia and I have two suitcases full of food and water in the boot of our car.'

That news seemed to brighten everyone's mood, we weren't any use to Nathan if we all went hungry. 

'Great, so lets collect the supplies and get the hell out of here,' Murphy insisted, more than ready to return back to the others. I didn't know what he had against this place, there were far worse places to stay without the convenience of beds and carpeted floor.

'Except the car broke down a few miles that way,' Alicia added, pointing helpfully over her shoulder as Murphy rolled his eyes with a sigh.

'Wonderful, aren't you two a great help,' he said sarcastically.

'Don't worry Murphy, it doesn't effect you in the slightest,' Bellamy said sharply, not in the mood for his sly comments. 'Elyza and I will go to collect the supplies whilst the rest of you return to base.'

Alicia's head jerked up instantly at that, her eyes searching out mine as her lips already formed the question.

'No you are not coming,' I said quickly, ready for the defiant glare that soon followed. 'Bellamy and I have one final thing to do whilst we're here, it's easier to travel unseen with less people.' 

'If it's to do with Nathan you should tell us your plan,' Atom insisted, noticing the look that Bellamy sent my way. He had guessed exactly what idea had come to mind. 

'It's just a last scout closer to the prison, we'll soon be back to tell you what we find,' I finally replied, not wanting to reveal just how close we intended to get to the base in question. If Alicia knew, then there was no way she would return without me. 

'Well that sounds good to me,' Murphy stated, pushing against the small table to rise to his feet. 'I'll see you all tomorrow before we set off.'

He waved his hand half heartedly in favour of a good night and went to claim one of the beds. Atom was next to scramble to his feet, also intent on claiming a good bed for the night. 

'I'll take the couch,' Bellamy offered, receiving a wide smile from his sister.

'Aw thanks bro, I guess I'll take the double bed then. Sleep well,' she teased, lightly punching his arm as she passed him on the way out.

That left Alicia and I with the twin room. I looked over at her and could already see the many arguments that she was lining up in response to the plan Bellamy and I had sorted for tomorrow. Maybe I should have taken the couch.

'Come on you two, if I'm sleeping on the couch then I might as well get to sleep at a reasonable time,' Bellamy insisted, and Alicia jumped up compliantly. It must have been close to midnight by now, and it had been an eventful day. 

I murmured a good night as Alicia moved past me, grabbing the torch along the way, and tugged on my arm impatiently for me to follow. Bellamy grinned knowingly at the onslaught of questions I was about to be on the receiving end of, and I rolled my eyes in good humour as I let the girl drag me away from the living area and into the empty bedroom.

She pushed me ahead and turned to shut the door firmly behind her. When she did spin to face me, her mouth already opening to begin her speech, I was ready with a few words of my own.

'Before you start, no you cannot come with us, no there is not a chance we will change our minds, and yes I am just that good. Did I miss anything?'

Alicia looked far from impressed at the interruption, narrowing her eyes as I threw myself down on the closest bed, not surprised to feel the multitude of springs against my back.

'You don't really understand the concept of humility do you?'

I pretended to consider this for a moment, crossing my ankles and lacing my fingers together behind my head. The single pillow was hardly a comfort and I could only imagine the face of the manager as he read what would have been an in depth review on this less than average establishment.

'Nothing wrong with being confident,' I offered with a shrug, well, as good as I could manage in that position.

'Until it gets you killed.'

Alicia's reply was instantaneous, lacking the humour that I had repelling her worries with. I dropped any pretence of nonchalance and allowed myself to be serious for just a moment.

'Nothings going to happen to me,' I assured her, 'this is just a quick scout so that I can get an idea of how the prison is set up and then we'll be running the supplies straight back to you.'

'Bellamy has already been over there, he has an idea of the layout so why don't we all just get the supplies together?' Alicia asked, but she already knew what I was thinking. I said nothing and saw her come to the understanding that my mind was set.

'You want to help your friend, I get that,' she went on, 'I just didn't want to split up like this.'

Now that I had bypassed the offensive front that she had presented me with, I could see the uncertainty that dwelt in the depths of her gaze and in that moment I understood her concerns. She may never see her mom or friends again because she had been forced to separate from them, it made sense that she would fear the same thing happening here. 

'I'll soon be back to get on your nerves, in the meantime I need you to keep those hotheads from doing anything stupid on the way back to base,' I insisted, mostly regarding Murphy and his lengthy history of rash decisions. 

Alicia managed a small smile and nodded firmly. 

'You'd better be.'

'Now get some rest, I don't want to wake up to one of your grouchy moods,' I teased, laughing when Alicia pulled the pillow from underneath me and dropped it unceremoniously on my face. The last thing I wanted was her to dwell on all the possible scenarios that could take place whilst Bellamy and I investigated the prison. 

'You would know what grouchy was if you could talk to yourself early in the morning, unfortunately I get that pleasure every day,' she retorted, and I heard her footsteps moving over to the second bed as I chuckled into the pillow. 

It seemed that the long back and forth had been avoided, and I appreciated Alicia's understanding of my decision. I didn't necessarily want to split up the group either, but it was safer this way regardless of our own feelings on the matter. 

Alicia flicked back the covers, placing the torch onto the small wooden stand next to the bed, and I rearranged the pillow back under my head as she grimaced at the state of the mattress. 

'Is it just my bed that's ready for the skip?' 

I turned over onto my side and made a point of exhaling as if in great comfort. In truth neither bed was in great condition, but I had left Alicia with the one that might get a second consideration before being tossed. Mine was ready to be burnt to ashes for the sheer discomfort it provided. 

'Looks like you pulled the short straw there, shame you won't be sleeping in luxury tonight,' I taunted her, blatantly lying as a spring made itself known by digging against my hip. 

'Either way, its better than sleeping for another night in your tin-pot of a car,' Alicia retorted with a sly grin, knowing that an insult to my favourite vehicle was certain revenge. I gasped in mock horror as she thumbed off the torch, plunging us into darkness. 

She really was getting better with the response time though, I thought with pride. She was learning fast. 

I knew that regardless of what I said Alicia would worry for my safety, and even I couldn't fully convince myself that we wouldn't run into trouble. Best case scenario we would be there and back with ease, but it was the worst case scenarios that I was attempting to distract Alicia from. For now it had worked, and my mind worked over the strategy for tomorrows survey of the prison even as I drifted into a light sleep. 

\---

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	12. Parting Ways

When I woke the next day, it was surprising just how well rested I felt after the less than kind treatment of the numerous springs in the mattress and seemingly rock-hard pillow beneath my head. 

A yawn escaped my lips as I glanced around the dim room, faint light from outside filtering through the thin curtains to reveal the empty bed pushed against the far wall. My thoughts of returning to sleep soon evaporated and I threw the quilt aside to scramble to my feet. 

Had I slept through Elyza's departure?

I left my jacket slung over the foot of the bed and stepped out into the quiet corridor, with no sign of anyone else being awake. If she had left me to sleep rather than wake me up, then the undead could get in line because I would kill her myself. 

The living room was just as we had left it, pillows strewn over the couch where I was dismayed not to find Bellamy sleeping. If both Elyza and Bellamy were nowhere to be seen then there was a good chance they had indeed left already. 

As I stared down silently at the couch, silently cursing Elyza for her disappearing acts, I jumped at an unexpected voice from behind me. 

'Well someone's up early today, it must be a special occasion to see you conscious before midday.'

Elyza had stepped out of the kitchen, a can in each hand as she smirked at my expression. Words failed me for a moment after having been so convinced that she had left, forcing a natural smile on my face as I attempted to hide the surge of relief. 

'I am not that bad, and just because it's the apocalypse it doesn't mean we have to be up before the sun rises every day.'

'Whatever you need to tell yourself,' Elyza said dismissively, 'So it looks like there's a choice of fruit or beans so I went with my gut instinct and got you the fruit.' 

She tossed one of the cans in a controlled arc towards me, but I was far too busy staring at her to coordinate myself to catch it. I reached out half-heartedly, not surprised when it dropped with a clunk to the floor. 

Elyza shrugged after a moment, proceeding to pop her own can open with ease. 

'Remind me never to throw a weapon your way, I would hate for you to accidently impale yourself.'

I scowled at her, my relief ebbing away as she threw her usual mocking comments my way.

'I'll impale you in a minute if you don't stop being so irritating, I know it comes naturally to you,' I countered, crouching to retrieve the can of fruit at my feet. 

'Hey, I could replace that with the more filling option of beans if you keep pushing your luck,' Elyza warned, taking a single step forwards as I stood up, an eyebrow quirked in challenge as if she were planning to dart forwards and reclaim the can of fruit.   

'Just you try it,' I retorted, taking a step forwards in return. 'It would be amusing to put you on your back for the second time in a week.'

Elyza looked like she was holding back a laugh, and was most likely ready to counter the pointed comment when a door creaked open behind me. I twisted my head, dropping the façade, to see Octavia prowling out of her room. 

'If you guys are going to flirt so loudly, then feel free to do it in the privacy of your own room where you won't be waking the rest of us up,' she muttered, brushing past me with a yawn on her way to the kitchen. 

My eyes widened and I opened my mouth to protest when Elyza laughed and followed her friend into the kitchen to retrieve cutlery. 

'Got to say, I agree with Alicia though,' Octavia added, grabbing herself a water bottle from the counter. 'It would be great fun to see you get put on your ass again.'

I smirked at Elyza who only rolled her eyes and came back to hand me a fork. 

'Shut up and eat that, then you can go make yourself more presentable,' she said with a wink that Octavia thankfully did not see. I frowned at the comment as Elyza passed me and went to see if the others were up, stabbing pieces of fruit with the fork as she went. 

Octavia caught sight of my confusion as she turned back, leaning against the counter with arms crossed, raising an eyebrow as she did. 

'Ooh yeah, well at least you can pull off the hot mess morning look, very few can.'

I was starting to think that it would have been a good idea to look in the mirror earlier before rushing out of my room so quickly and glanced down to see what Octavia was talking about. 

My tank top had ridden up higher than the waist band of my jeans, and I soon became uncomfortably aware of the left strap hanging loose against my upper arm, having fallen at some time during my hasty rise from the bed. Heaven forbid what state my hair was currently in. If only I had just grabbed my jacket on the way out. 

Octavia's grin widened and she turned away to find herself some food as I pulled down the top and hurried back to my room before any of the guys woke up and saw me like this. Shutting the door firmly at my back, I entered the ensuite and flicked on the torch, only to wish I hadn't when I caught sight of my reflection.

God knows what they'd thought of me when they'd seen me stood there with my shirt hiked up and hair in a state. Of course Elyza wouldn't have said anything, it was far more amusing this way.

I sighed and went about straightening my clothes and putting my hair up with the only hairband I had in my possession. Before leaving, I made sure to pull my jacket over my shoulders this time and went back to the kitchen where I had left my breakfast.

Elyza was perched on one of the high stools in the kitchen, taking an inventory of the weapons in her rucksack in preparation before her and Bellamy set off.

'You look nice today,' she said innocently, barely raising her eyes from the knife she was inspecting as I sat on the stool opposite.

'You could have told me,' I muttered, slipping my finger through the metal loop of the lid to open the can. This was definitely better than eating cold beans for breakfast.

'Where would the fun be in that?' she replied, a gleam in her eye as she briefly looked up at me and slipped the knife into her bag.

I shook my head and retrieved the pieces of fruit with my fork, enjoying the sweet taste that the juice provided.

Atom and Murphy soon trudged in from their respective rooms, scouring the cupboards for anything more interesting than fruit before reclining in the living room on the couch.

Octavia emerged not long after, looking far more awake and just as fierce with weapons already strapped to her side. It looked like the good humour was soon to come to an end and we would be parting ways.

I stabbed the fruit in front of me with slightly more force than necessary as I was reminded of the danger that Elyza was about to put herself in by going to scout the prison base. If her and Bellamy were captured then they were as good as dead, the gang would only need one hostage to control their rivals, no need for three.

If given the option I would have gone with them without hesitation, however I knew that Elyza would not even consider the prospect. The only benefit of me returning to their base was the off chance that they had a working radio with a wide enough range to contact my family, if they were still alive. 

It wasn't a subject I had yet breached with the group, but I couldn't contain my curiosity any longer. 

'When we get to the base,' I began, almost faltering before even receiving a response, feeling Octavias eyes fall on me as I spoke. 'Is there a radio that's still working?'

A moment passed in which I envisioned all the possible replies that I could be about to hear. My hopes of reuniting with my family all lay in this answer, without a radio it would be near impossible to locate them again. 

Elyza also turned her gaze to Octavia, forgetting her weapons momentarily as she awaited the response. 

'Well I should hope so, we definitely left it in one piece,' Octavia said, not aware of just how much that meant to me. 

I couldn't help but smile at the thought of talking to my family again, this was everything I could've hoped for. 

Clarke inclined her head towards me with a knowing grin, as if to say _I told you so,_ before zipping up the rucksack in front of her.

The sound of the front door opening was followed by Bellamys appearance in the living room, a rifle strapped over his shoulder.

'It's all clear out there, if we want to get moving then now would be the best time,' he directed at Elyza, dropping his rucksack to the ground and it was clear that he was ready to leave.

My happiness at hearing about the radio was overshadowed now that the time for us to part had come. She nodded and hopped down from the stool, throwing the bag over one shoulder as she said a brief goodbye to Octavia.

Murphy raised a hand in acknowledgement but made no move to get to his feet, clearly the two of them were not all that close. Surprisingly it was Atom who leapt to his feet, a bag of his own packed and ready to go. 

'I'll join you, one more won't make much difference.'

Bellamy looked unconvinced but Elyza only shrugged. 

'If you're certain.'

'More than certain, there's only so long you can spend at base without going stir crazy,' he insisted. At least that would be one more weapon if they got into any trouble. 

Finally Elyza turned to me, a half smile on her face as she kept the mood light.

'You'll be safe with these guys, though you'd best do what Octavia says or she'll get cranky,' she said, lowering her voice as if her friend couldn't hear.

'We'll be fine, though it's not too late if you want some extra company?' I offered, not suprised when Elyza shook her head. 

'They have a radio back at base, and its about time you got into contact with your family. This is what the whole journey has been for.'

'Just dont do anything stupid, or heroic,' I finally replied, returning her smile. She was right, the faster I got back to base the sooner I would be speaking to my family again. 

'Oh you know me, always keeping out of trouble. I'll see you back at base.'

'Get back safely guys, we wont be far behind,' Bellamy addressed the room, moving over to give his sister a quick hug as Atom was already disappearing out of the room.  

'You'd better be,' I said, looking pointedly at Elyza. 'Or I'll come and hunt you down myself.'

She stepped towards the door with a smile, sending a mock salute my way. 

'Understood.' 

Then she was gone, with Bellamy following a moment later and shutting the door firmly behind him. 

I just stared after them for a few moments, trying to ignore the sinking feeling in my chest that trouble was the exact thing they were going to find themselves in. It seemed to be Elyza's constant companion, no matter where she was. 

'We'll head off soon as well, so you guys get your things together,' Octavia instructed, going into the living room to get Murphy moving. 

I needed no such prompting and went to collect my bag from the room I had shared with Elyza. I had barely unpacked the previous night so there was little left for me to do other than grab the torch and do a double check to ensure I hadn't left anything. 

My eye caught on the slip of paper resting on my pillow, that certainly hadn't been there earlier. I stepped over to the bed and picked it up carefully. 

_I know you're worried about  us going to the prison but it'll be fine, promise.  I'll tell you all about how  right I was when I get back, so look forward that that._

_Check under the cover, you lost yours so here's a replacement. Here's hoping you wont need it._

_Stay safe,_

_Elyza x_

I could only smile, picturing her writing this with complete confidence, ready to bet that it would all go fine. I just hoped she was right. 

With a light sigh, I gently folded the paper and slipped into the pocket of my jeans. With one swift motion I pulled back the top half of the quilt and unwrapped the pillow case that I found there to reveal one of Elyza's many knives. 

I had almost forgotten that I was now without a weapon thanks to Octavia's abrupt tackle the other day and it definitely felt better to have one now that we were venturing back into the undead infested world once more. I dug through my bag to find the sheath for my previous knife and hooked it through my jeans, slotting the knife into the allotted place.

 With the familiar weight now resting against my hip, I was ready to leave and went into the living room to await the others.   
  
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